Acts 2:22-36 "Assurance of Lordship"

Introduction

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is deemed by many to be a religious belief that has little to no universal implications for humanity.

Non-Christians have no regard for it and that is no surprise to me at all. Some who call themselves Christians (like Rudolf Bultmann) think the resurrection is a mythological add on to a Christianity that is primarily about moral teaching.

Bultmann believed that one had to demythologize the Bible because elements of Greek mythology have been incorporated into the New Testament. So the myth must be separated from the truth in order to get to the heart of what is really being revealed in the Bible.

The problem with that is that there is the continuity of Scripture. Various book with different human authors all bearing witness of God’s revelation covering thousands of years.

And when it comes to the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead the continuity of Scripture bears witness on the reliability of the doctrine of the resurrection.

The Apostle Peter’s sermon at Pentecost taps into the revelation of the Scriptures and the obvious implication of Jesus Christ being raised from the dead. Look at verses 22-24

I. The Testimony of Peter (22-24).

You do remember Peter right? That disciple of Jesus who denied him three times. Once full of timidity on good Friday but now after witnessing the resurrected Christ and receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit he is preaching about the resurrection publicly.

And he is not giving the people moralistic principle to live by nor is there 7 steps to the better you.

He is speaking about the plan of God being revealed in the person and work of Jesus of Nazareth.

And God was validating His plan by working miracles right in front of them.

God also was the one who delivered Jesus up to be crucified in the hands of lawless men. The cross was the predetermined plan of God.

But how in the world does Peter know all of this? Well he knew because of his firsthand accounts but life experience needs to be informed by an outside source in order to make such incredible claims. So he appeals to Scripture:

Psalm 16:8-11 in verses 25-28

Psalm 110:1 in verses 34-35

So Peter connects the dots between His own experience in encountering the resurrected Christ and the Old Testament Scriptures.

And he does this by specifically referencing King David’s testimony in both of these Old Testament Psalms and he draws a certain conclusion. Look back at verses 29-33*

II. The Testimony of David (29-33).

These Old Testament Psalms are not David making reference to himself. And Peter makes this clear because he references King David’s tomb and makes the point that David is still in it.

So Psalm 16:8-11 is not referring to King David but David was prophesying in light of the Davidic covenant that God had made with him. God promised David that one of his descendants would set on David’s throne forever.

Funny thing about descendants, they eventually die too.

But Peter says in verse 31, “he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ”. Christ being a reference to Jesus being the anointed one of God.

King David foresaw God raising up Jesus from the dead. David is testifying 1,000 years earlier to the very thing that Peter says the disciples have witnessed first hand.

But it is not just the resurrection that Peter has witnessed and that King David has testified to. The Ascension and the exaltation of Christ at the Father’s right hand from Psalm 110:1.

Christ’s exaltation at the Father’s right hand has made Kingdom theology the context of the Christian life. Not the political realms of earthly kingdoms but the realm of Christ’s rule and dominion.

This is exactly the conclusion that Peter comes to in regards to the implications of the resurrection and exaltation of Christ. Look at verse 36:

III. The Implications (36).

Christian know it for certain. We should all know by now that the last enemy to be destroyed will be death. Christ has already demonstrated that sin has been atoned for and therefore death has no dominion over Him.

It has been said that eventually death comes for all of us. But Scripture tells us one day Jesus Christ exalted in resurrection power in full and complete exercise of sovereign dominion will one day come for death.

And it will be like my old grand pappy use to say it will be like shooting fish in a barrel. And no I will not feel sorry for death, I will not weep over it and I will not miss it one bit. I will rejoice that death is no more.

And we will gather in the assembly of those who have gone before us to give glory to the one seated on the throne for all eternity.

For He is Lord and Christ this Jesus who was crucified on Calvary’s Tree.

Conclusion

All of us are made for eternity. The real question is where are you going to spend it?

Lee Strobel was an Atheist and a reporter for the Chicago Tribune. His wife became a believer and it upset him to a great degree.

He decided that being the investigative journalist that he was he would set out to disprove Christianity. A friend told him that all he had to do was disprove the resurrection and Christianity would fall.

What happened instead is that he became convinced that not only was the resurrection true but Strobel became a Christian too.

If the truth claims of Christianity are true then the implications are huge. C.S. Lewis said it this way: “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance, the only thing it cannot be is moderately important” C.S. Lewis

How important is Christianity to you today? Yes I am talking to us all who call ourselves Christians.

The implications of the resurrected and exalted Christ come to bear upon our lives and expose our need for God’s grace to us.

Our hearts are so fickle and our affections for the world are so easily manipulated. Christian it is God’s plan to work Christ in us. Confess and receive.

Unbeliever I am not declaring make believe mythology to you today. There is a long record backing it up from history and the Bible lays it out for you.

Believe the gospel today and be reconciled to God.

Let’s Pray!