The New Covenant People

Introduction

What is Christian conversion?

When we tell our friends, our family, and our co-workers the gospel… aiming to persuade them to believe… what should we try to persuade them to do?

Once a person is converted… once they’ve crossed over from spiritual death to spiritual life, from sinful rebellion against God to glad submission, from lost to saved… what then? Is that it? Is conversion all there is, or does Christianity make a difference in a person’s life the day after they’ve “surrendered all” to Jesus?

And what’s God’s role in all of this?

During our last time together in the book of Acts, we considered the concept of “the day of the Lord.” At Pentecost, the Apostle Peter told the crowd that what they were seeing and hearing was what the Old Testament prophet Joel had said would take place at “the day of the Lord” (Joel 2:1, 11, 31; cf. Acts 2:20).

On Pentecost, in first-century Jerusalem, the great and awesome “day of the Lord” was upon them; and that meant both judgment and salvation. Judgment for Israel’s sin and rebellion against God’s covenantal laws, but also salvation for those who looked to Jesus as both Lord and Christ (i.e., King and Savior), even the same Jesus they had crucified.

There is no doubt that the book of Acts (as well as the Gospels before it) means to tell us that ethnic Israel (those under the Mosaic covenant) was finally facing God’s unleashed judgment for centuries of idolatry and wickedness.

Though God’s old covenant people had been given a multitude of chances and warnings, they consistently disobeyed the only true God. They adopted the same corrupt practices and pagan deities as other nations, and they even wrapped it all up in what they thought was a righteous bow. But Peter’s message at Pentecost was clear… The bill has come due, and the collector is at the door.

There is also no doubt that the Bible means to tell us that the judgment that did fall upon Israel way back then is something of a microcosm of the judgment that will fall ultimately upon the whole world… when the “day of the Lord” arrives in full… for all of us.

Just as Israel repeatedly and heinously sinned against God, so too does all humanity. Every one of us (with a little honest introspection) must admit our own horrific indifference towards God and His laws. Throughout our lives, we have willingly overstepped and arrogantly neglected the reasonable obedience due to the God who has made us and who sustains us every second.

And we are not unique as sinners… the whole world is full of sinners just like us.

So, Peter’s warning of impending judgment and his offer of salvation are basically the same for us (and everyone else) today.

But the questions I want to consider with you now are the ones I asked a moment ago. These are the questions I think are answered for us in our passage this morning.

The book of Acts begins with a small band of confused disciples, and by the time we get to the end of chapter 2, we have a thriving mega-church with meaningful membership and even a basic structure of teaching and discipling.

How did that happen?! What did they do?! And how might we implement their strategy in our own context?

Lord willing, we will see that it’s actually not that complicated… and we will see that God expects us (as well as every Christian before and after us) to do exactly as they did, all the while trusting in God’s wisdom and power to build His New Covenant people (among numerous local churches) in whatever way He sees fit.

Let’s turn now to Acts chapter 2. I’m going to begin in v36 (overlapping a little with our last reading, so we can pick up properly), and I’ll read through the end of the chapter.

Scripture reading

Acts 2:36–47 (ESV)

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

37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.”

40 And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.”

41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.

42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

43 And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles.

44 And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.

46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people.

And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

Main point

Through the gospel of Jesus Christ, God creates a New Covenant people, marked off from the world and united by shared devotion.

Message

1. The Heart of Christianity

The heart of Christianity is the gospel of Jesus Christ, and we see Peter’s gospel presentation come to its climactic point in v36, the first verse of our passage this morning. Peter said that all the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob could “know for certain that God [their God – the God of the Bible – Yahweh God] has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus…” (v36).

It may or may not be clear to you but ascribing these two terms (“Lord” and “Christ”) to Jesus is a summary of the gospel… at least for anyone who understands what the Bible means when it uses such words as “Lord” and “Christ.”

“Lord” is the title given only to God in such a context as we’re reading here. The word translated “lord” in the Bible (κυριος or אֲדֹנָי adonai) can refer to anyone who is a ruler or master, but in the biblical worldview there is only one divine“Lord.”

Now, from the OT perspective, there was an anticipation of a supreme earthly “lord” (as distinct from the one divine Lord), but the earthly “lord” could only refer a descendent of Israel’s king, the rightful heir of God’s kingdom on earth (Psalm 110).

“Christ” is basically a transliteration of the Greek word χριστος, which is a translation of the Hebrew word מָשִׁיַח or messiah. Christ and Messiah both mean the same thing, which is simply “anointed one.” Throughout the Old Testament, the prophets spoke of one who was to come, one who would be the“Christ” or the “Messiah” who would restore God’s people (Daniel 9:25) and reign as King over all the earth (Psalm 2).

Either of these titles (“Lord” or “Christ”) ascribed to Jesus would be an obvious claim to His identity as the culmination of all God’s promises of “blessing” for everyone who “takes refuge in him” (Psalm 2). But the combination of these words, both simultaneously given to Jesus, is an unmistakable announcement.

Jesus is “both Lord and Christ” (v36), but what does that mean for those hearing such an announcement? Well, as we talked about earlier, it means that both judgment and salvation come through Jesus… That was true for Israel then, and it’s true for us now.

Jesus confronts us in our sin, reminding us that there is coming a day when He Himself shall return to “repay each one for what he [or she] has done” (Revelation 22:12). And Jesus offers sinners like us grace and mercy, having given Himself as the atoning sacrifice under God’s wrath.

The Bible teaches us that “the righteousness” [i.e., the moral perfection] of God Himself comes to “all who believe” in Jesus Christ, because Jesus was “put forward” at the cross “as a propitiation” [i.e., a means of forgiveness] “to be received by faith” (Romans 3:22-25).

This is the very thing Peter promised his hearers on the day of Pentecost. Look at v38.

Peter said that those who repent and believe will have “forgiveness of sins,” and – more than that – they will “receive the Holy Spirit” (v38).

As we’ve said many times before, this means full restoration of all that was lost in Genesis 3! Man’s sin no longer counted against him, and God no longer distant and incensed… All is reconciled, and God is with man!

This is glorious, to be sure… This is the promise of the gospel! But there’s still one more promise or result of this gospel which I want to highlight in the passage.

v41 tells us that “those who received [Peter’s] word [i.e., they believed the gospel I’ve been explaining here] were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.”

To what were these 3,000 people added?

They were added to the existing number of Jesus’s disciples (about 120 [Acts 1:15])!

They were added to the New Covenant people of God!

They were added to the young church that was just begun in Jerusalem!

This is what I meant when I said (in my main point), through the gospel of Jesus Christ, God creates a New Covenant people…

But how does God create a New Covenant people throughor by the proclamation of the gospel? He does it by saving or transforming or converting some of those sinners who hear the gospel for what it is… as supremely good news.

2. Christian Conversion

When the gospel is proclaimed, some people will ignore it. Others will think it foolish. And still others will hate and oppose it. But sometimes, the hearer of the gospel will be convinced that the message is true. And they will come to believe/trust/have-faith-in not only the message but the Savior and Lord who is the substance of that message.

Why do some people believe the message of the gospel, while others reject or ignore it?

Why did some of you respond to Jesus Christ with faith and repentance, even though your lost family members and friends have not?

Are you smarter than non-Christians? Are you more sincere? Are you just more spiritually in-tune than those who do not now believe and follow Jesus?

I hope you know that there’s nothing originating in you that makes you better or more deserving or more capable of Christian conversion than anyone else.

The Bible makes it clear that God is the one who grants spiritual fools the gift of spiritual understanding (1 Corinthians 2:12-14); God shines glorious light into dark and blinded minds of unbelief (2 Corinthians 4:3-6); God, “being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved [sinners like] us,” brings to spiritual life those who once were “dead in their trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1-5).

Praise God that He not only calls to sinners in a general way, urging us to repent and to believe… but He calls forth life from the depths of our dead souls… and creates within us what wasn’t there before! …That’s what it means to be converted!

But that’s Christian conversion from cruising altitude… It’s like looking down from a theological height that gives you a sort of God’s-eye-view of conversion.

What about Christian conversion on the ground?

What does it look like up-close, when a spiritually dead sinner hears the gospel and somehow comes to life?

How are believing Christian converts marked off from the world of unbelievers?

In our passage, Peter called his hearers to do two things explicitly, and a third thing implicitly… and all of these are features of Christian conversion. Let’s look at them.

In v37, we read the heartfelt plea of some of Peter’s hearers that day. They asked, “what shall we do?” In other words, “What should we do to escape judgment and to participate in salvation, through the Lord Jesus Christ?”

Peter tells them to (1) “Repent” and (2) “be baptized” (v38)… and implied in both of these is the 3rd feature of belief or faith, which we see on display in v41 – “those who received [the] word” were those being baptized.

The word “repent” comes from a Greek word that essentially means to change your mind. As a response to the gospel, repentance is a change of mind about several things.

The call to repent is a call to change your mind about what sinis. Sin isn’t just a mistake, it isn’t a victimless crime, and there is no such thing as an insignificant sin. Sin is cosmic treason against the King and God of the universe. Friends, sin is a bigger deal than we naturally know, and we need to think rightly about it.

The call to repent is a call to change your mind about who Godis. God isn’t subject to our whims, He isn’t our cosmic butler (waiting to serve us), and He isn’t manipulated or impressed by our worldly arguments or prestige. God is the only self-existent being; He needs nothing and depends on no one. God is the supreme sovereign and rightful ruler of all; His commands are morally perfect, and His decisions are absolute.

The call to repent is a call to change your mind about who Jesusis. Jesus isn’t just a good man, He isn’t just a philosopher, or a self-help guru, or a community organizer. Jesus is the divine Son of God; the one who was and is both Lord and Christ. Jesus is the only man who lived perfectly under God’s law, but Jesus was condemned as the guiltiest sinner in all human history. And this same Jesus, who once was dead, was raised to life on the third day, never to die again. He now reigns as King of kings and Lord of lords, and He will return one day to bring to an end the time of sin and sorrow and all forms of wickedness and evil.

Repentance, then, is a changing of the mind, which plays out in all sorts of changes in the way we think and act and speak. Repentance is taking on the biblical view of things and throwing off the worldly view, which is natural to us in a post-Genesis-3 world.

Friends, hear the gospel call to repent today! …And may God grant us such a gift.

Let’s turn our attention now to the other features of Christian conversion in our passage: baptism and belief.

As I said already, belief is implied along with repentance. There’s a sense in which repentance includes belief, since we must change or turn from unbelief toward belief.

But, for a long time now, Christians have spoken about repentance and belief as sort of two sides of the same coin. Repentance, we might say, is turning away from our sin and error and unbelief; and beliefis turning toward Christ (i.e., trusting in Him).

In our passage, the only time the word “belief” or “believe” shows up is in v44, describing the unity of those “who believed.” But belief is also found in v41, where Luke tells us that “those who received[Peter’s] word” (i.e., they believed Peter’s word or message was true) were added to the group of Christians already there in Jerusalem.

Belief is the most frequently used New Testament word for what sinners are to do in response to the gospel… such that “believer” and “Christian” are essentially synonyms.

The problem with belief, however, is that you can’t really see it. Belief is a major distinction between Christians and non-Christians… Belief is something only converted people do… But belief doesn’t make you glow or turn your eyes/hair a different color.

Baptism, on the other hand, is highly visible… And that’s why baptism has been (from the very beginning of Christianity) the way Christian converts “go public” with their belief in Jesus Christ.[1] More importantly, baptism was instituted by Christ as the initial sign of association or union with Christ and His people in the world (Matthew 28:18-20)… all of which we see on display here in Acts 2.

Christian conversion, then and now, includes public/visible… repentance and belief.

But we also see (in Acts 2) that conversion isn’t the end of it! After conversion comes Christian living… and Christian living is both ordinary and profound.

3. Christian Living

Sometimes I hear Christians talk as though the Christian life is supposed to look obviously powerful or heroic or successful in the world. Some Christians make it sound like doing “great things for God” must mean business innovation, political accomplishment, or some kind of success in a worldly arena.

But, as we’ve tried to emphasize (even recently), doing “great things for God” means persistently doing ordinary things that are far more profound than we might first understand them to be. Take a look at the kinds of things these first Christians did, and consider that these were the very people who turned the world upside-down!

v41 tells us that about 3,000 sinners were converted to Christ on the day of Pentecost, and they were added to the fledgling church there in Jerusalem by baptism. And then v42 is where we start to read about what these church members did with their everyday lives. I count 4 distinct things they “devoted themselves” to… Let’s look at each one.

First, they devoted themselves to “the apostles’ teaching” (v42). We’re told that they formally did this by “attending the temple together” (v46), which is no-doubt showing us that these Jewish converts to Christianity kept their weekly Jewish routine of “attending the temple” on the Sabbath to hear biblical instruction and to pray together.

But within the storyline of Acts (20:7), and elsewhere in the New Testament (1 Corinthians 16:2; Revelation 1:10), we see Christians shifting their primary gathering day to the “first day of the week,” which they also called “the Lord’s day.”

This devotion to the “apostles’ teaching” was literally sitting under the Apostles’ teaching and preaching ministry in these earliest days of New Testament churches. But, soon – as Christianity expanded geographically and chronologically – there were more churches than there were Apostles, so “the apostles’ teaching” was conveyed by letter and exposited (or explained) by local church elders or pastors.

We see this exemplified and commanded in Scripture, and (for centuries now) Christians have continued this devoted practice. We’re doing this today! Every Sunday, we devote ourselves to “the apostles’ teaching” by reading the Scriptures they wrote and by considering how to understand and apply it to our lives.

Second, they devoted themselves to “the fellowship” (v42). This word translated “fellowship” means a close mutual association and sharing with one another. We see this summarized in v44, where Luke tells us that these early church members “were together and had all things in common.”

The “fellowship” Christians share with one another is more than a mere friendship, though it certainly includes that. Christian fellowship is a sharing of ourselves. We open up our lives to one another, sharing our time, giving away our talents, and parting with our worldly treasures… for the sake of any true need among us.

This is a major aspect of the commitment we make as church members. We are committed (we’ve voluntarily signed up) to have close mutual association with one another and to share who we are and what we have with one another. We do this, not out of charity or social welfare, not out of guilt, and not out of a desire for recognition (“Look, everyone, at how generous I am!”).

No, we do this because we know what it’s like to be loved by someone who is way out of our league. We do this because we know what it’s like to have someone care about us even when we have nothing to offer. We love one another, because we (as Christians) share a common love for the Savior who has shown us what love really is.

The third devotion I see among these early Christians is to “the breaking of bread” (v42)… and v46 adds the “breaking bread in their homes” (v46).

Some have argued that this expression implies that they were sharing in the ordinance or sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, and they certainly were observing the Lord’s Supper regularly. But I don’t think that’s what’s in view here in our passage.

One, the Lord’s Supper is something the whole local church is to do “when [they] come together” (1 Cor. 11:33-34)… It’s a church ordinance, not a family or individual one.

Two, there’s nothing particularly special about Christians “devoting themselves” to observing the Lord’s Supper. Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are basic and universal Christian practices from the earliest days of Christianity… Jesus commanded them, and Christians observed these ordinances.

But sharing their family tables with one another… Now, that’s something very special.

Even in our own day, table fellowship is a sign of welcome and care. We invite non-family members to our family dinner table as a gesture of welcoming them into our homes and into our lives. But in first-century Jerusalem (and the wider world as well) table fellowship meant even more (far more) than it does today. Your social, economic, political, and even religious identity was tied up with who sat at your dinner table.

It is no small thing that they devoted themselves to “breaking bread [with one another] in their homes,” and it’s no small thing for us to devote ourselves to this practice today.

Spending time together in the mundane event of making and eating dinner may not seem like much, but over time, that’s the sort of thing that adds up.

How many times have you had family arguments and family reconciliation at the dinner table? How many times have you discussed major life decisions, confronted a long-overdue problem, arrived at a new place in a relationship, or simply enjoyed the company of those you love… at the dinner table?

Dinner tables are one of the main places families grow and share and laugh and cry together… and welcoming our brothers and sisters in Christ to that kind of fellowship is exactly what meaningful Christianity looks like.

The fourth devotion in our passage is a devotion to “prayers” or “the prayers” (v42). This may refer to the daily prayers that were common to Jews, since these first Christians were all Jewish by birth and by religion. Once again, early Christianity often kept the routine of Old Covenant Judaism, but they understood that Christ was the substance of all that had been typified or shadowed by the calendar and the customs.

But even if this isn’t telling us that they devoted themselves to specific prayer times each day, Luke is clearly telling us that “prayer” was a big part of the Christian life.

Now, just note with me for a second what “devotions” marked Christian living in our passage. There was devotion to biblical teaching, to meaningful fellowship, to regularly eating together, and to prayer. Do you notice how ordinary these things are?

And yet, what does v47 tell us was happening among Christians who devoted themselves to such ordinary stuff? God gave them “favor” and He “added to their number day by day those who were being saved” (v47).

4. Trusting God WIth the Results

You may or may not have seen it yet, but all throughout the passage we’ve been studying this morning, God is the one who is working and accomplishing everything.

In v36, God is the one who sent Jesus into the world and made Him “both Lord and Christ.”

In v39, God is the one calling sinners to Himself, and in v41, about 3,000 of them are added to the first church in Jerusalem.

In v43, God is the one doing “many wonders and signs… through the apostles,” validating their message as Christ’s spokesmen in the world.

And in v47, God is the one growing His Church (His New Covenant people) as He sees fit to do it.

This is why I said (in my main point), Through the gospel of Jesus Christ, God creates a New Covenant people… He adds to the number, He matures and grows them, and He brings them safely to their final destination!

This passage at the beginning of Acts is crucial for Christians in every generation, because we (like every human ever) are prone to think that God gets results in the world just like everyone else gets results. Christians of every age have used worldly means in an effort to build and expand God’s kingdom.

But this passage blatantly reminds us that no worldly power and no genius innovation is necessary… as a matter of fact, if we try to introduce such things, it would work against what this passage is plainly teaching us.

What did Jesus command His followers to do?

He said, “Wait [here]… [and] you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:4, 8).

And what did Jesus want His followers to do with those who responded to the gospel with repentance and belief?

He said, “make disciples of [them, wherever they might be], [by] baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [and by] teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19–20).

And what did Jesus’s followers do as soon as they were filled with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost?

They preached the gospel, giving witness to the person and work of Christ.

They called their hearers to repentance and belief, and they baptized those who repented and believed.

Then they devoted themselves to ordinary practices that would make them better understand Christ’s commands and also help them apply them to their lives together.

And, amid all this ordinary activity of preaching, teaching, baptizing, eating, praying, and fellowshipping together, what did God do?

God created a New Covenant people, marking them off from the world and uniting them to Christ and to one another. And what a miraculous display of God’s power it is!

Friends, it may seem that there are so many more urgent matters around us in the world… It may often seem like there are more important places to spend our time… But the everyday stuff of Christianity – the gospel, conversion, and Christian living – is the stuff God uses to profoundly affect today and eternity.

May God help us to be more like these early Christians.

May God help us to know and to proclaim the gospel.

May God help us to understand what it means to be a Christian convert, repenting and believing ourselves and calling others to do the same.

May God help us to devote ourselves to ordinary Christian living.

And may God help us to trust Him with the results.

Endnotes

[1]I’m using language of “going public” in association with baptism from my reading on the subject from Bobby Jamieson. If someone else used the phrase before him, I don’t know about it.

Bibliography

Calvin, John, and Henry Beveridge. Commentary upon the Acts of the Apostles. Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2010. Print.

Peterson, David G. The Acts of the Apostles. Grand Rapids, MI; Nottingham, England: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009. Print. The Pillar New Testament Commentary.

Polhill, John B. Acts. Vol. 26. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1992. Print. The New American Commentary.

Sproul, R. C., ed. The Reformation Study Bible: English Standard Version (2015 Edition). Orlando, FL: Reformation Trust, 2015. Print.