The Promise of Beginning
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Introduction
Introduction
As we continue looking into the book of Acts, we now move to what I call the greatest sermon ever preached.
As a preacher, this is the model that we should follow.
The other day, Josh asked me what model I use to preach, well, Once we discover today’s text, I can confidently say, If we preach for results, follow this model it has a key component
As I will explain later, there is one key element in this model.
Why, Let’s read the text and I will let you know.
I’m Going to ask that the slides be advanced by ______ as I read through my Bible.
I encourage you to follow along with your Bible as well.
Let’s read
14 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.
15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day.
16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:
17 “ ‘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;
18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;
20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.
21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’
22 “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—
23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.
24 God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.
25 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;
26 therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope.
27 For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption.
28 You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’
29 “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.
30 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,
31 he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption.
32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses.
33 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.
34 For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, “ ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand,
35 until I make your enemies your footstool.” ’
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.
Josh, or anyone who is preaching, if you are looking for results, this is a model. Around 3 thousand souls were added.
There is a statement roaming out in the world that a good sermon has 3 points.
Well, this sermon has three sections. An explanation, A proclamation, and a call.
As I began preparing for this message, reading over the text, reading over commentaries about this text, I began to see a pattern similar to some of the training I had from my father many years earlier.
You see my father was a man of many things.
His main employment was a Transit City driver but his heart was that of a salesman.
One of my father’s passion in life was to sell things to people. I say things quite loosely. It wasn’t just material objects, but concepts, learning tricks and near the end of his life the passion for the Gospel.
Dad always had three parts of the sales technique that he taught his children.
Introduce yourself, and to be aware of the listener’s needs.
Introduce the product or item. Show it’s merits and why the person listening would need this. You must know the product in order to sell it.
Close the sale. A fact not often taught to people. Dad would often say, “People are wanting you to ask them to sign up. If you don’t ask, they won’t offer.”
So what does selling have to do with today’s passage?
Quite honestly, there are similarities to what my father taught me and this approach Peter took as he addressed the people.
The Explanation
The Explanation
Peter’s Sermon began because of a question on the mind’s of the people watching the first appearance of God’s Spirit at Pentecost.
As I mentioned last week, Peter stood up and led the group in a decision of choosing the replacement.
This was a different Peter,
Now filled with the Spirit, standing with the others, scripture tells us
Acts 2:14 (ESV)
14 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.
Peter’s first sermon was not addressed to the followers of Christ, rather his first sermon was to the onlookers of the gathering of the followers.
“Men of Judah and those dwelling in Jerusalem.”
He was speaking in the local language that would have been Greek to those listening as this was the common language. He also began by addressing the confusing event, using the negative approach.
They are not drunk. Sarcastically, it’s only 9:00 am in the morning.
Peter then moves on to tell them what is really happening.
To the Jews, who knew the scripture, he pulled them back to the prophecy. To the onlookers, he explained that this was foretold many years before
The way Peter uses Joel 2:28–32 is of great significance as you study this passage.
First, it gives us an understanding and appreciation of early Christian exegetical practices and doctrinal commitments
Secondly, we can use this as a pattern for our own treatment of the OT.
Peter is quoting Joel’s words that were actually God’s spoken words for the people.
When they were first spoken to the people there was some confusion and lack of clarity, but now Peter brings some understanding. fulfillment.
You see Peter’s proclamation can be understood this way
Peter has witnessed the Messiah’s resurrection and dwelling with them.
He takes the Joel Passage and does the following
One:
that “this” that he and the infant church were experiencing in the outpouring of God’s Spirit “is that” prophesied by Joel,
Two:
that these are “the last days” of God’s redemptive program, and
three:
The “Last Days” are the final stages of prophecies of the true salvation and the complete establishment of the Kingdom of God.
The apostles will be proclaiming (The New Testament) and fulfill the understanding of God’s message and the need for a true repentance
Some Content taken from:
Longenecker, R. N. (1981). The Acts of the Apostles. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: John and Acts (Vol. 9, pp. 275–276). Zondervan Publishing House.
This morning I do not want to deal specifically on the implication of Joel’s passage and how we are to understand specifically what that passage means to us.
That is a complete sermon or Bible Study. To be honest it is these types of texts that give way to a resurgent of the former ways of Adult Sunday Classes.
But what we can take away from this text is that Peter is realizing that the time is coming where calling on the Name of the Lord is coming into a clearer understanding of end times. It should draw us to a greater urgency to proclaim the Good News to those around us.
You see as one person puts it,
The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 9: John and Acts a. Apologia Section (2:14–21)
God has inaugurated, Peter proclaims, the long-awaited “last days” here and now, and we know this because of the reinstitution of prophecy. Other signs, to be sure, were part of Joel’s vision, but Peter does not stress them. His emphasis is entirely on prophecy as the sign of the inauguration of the last days. Even though he might have had his own personal expectations, Peter leaves all else for God to work out in the Messianic Age that had been inaugurated.
We could paraphrase Peter by saying the Time has come
The Gift has been given.
Peter’s is proclaiming in his explanation the need for the coming Proclamation.
Peter’s first sermon, a compelling sermon, started with the deliverance of the Gift.
This is the key component of the sermon model.
A sermon without the Spirit working in the lives of people is a talk with empty words.
One person wrote,
The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Volume 28: Acts The Miracle of Preaching
Once Peter started, he was caught up by the Spirit’s power. A further miracle of Pentecost resulted: the miracle of preaching. You may wonder why I call preaching a miracle; we’ve all heard plenty of it that didn’t seem very miraculous to us! But preaching of a biblical text with the power of the Spirit, to people whom He has prepared, seldom lacks for miraculous result: conviction, faith, and changed lives. Authentic preaching is really prophecy—not foretelling, but forthtelling. It is done with boldness, courage, and urgency. And it’s not only done in hand-carved pulpits with colored hangings for the right season of the Christian year. Preaching is certainly a special calling, but its main purpose is to proclaim the gospel in an impelling way so that every member can be prophetic in sharing the faith.
The Proclamation
The Proclamation
After explaining the reason for the sermon, Peter then dives right into the proclamation.
As we work our way through Acts, this is the first of many sermons and they all seem to have the same types of themes in his sermons.
The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 9: John and Acts b. Kerygma Section (2:22–36)
1. “The age of fulfillment has dawned.”
2. “This has taken place through the ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus, of which a brief account is given, with proof from the Scriptures.”
3. “By virtue of the resurrection, Jesus has been exalted at the right hand of God, as Messianic head of the new Israel.”
4. “The Holy Spirit in the Church is the sign of Christ’s present power and glory.”
5. “The Messianic Age will shortly reach its consummation in the return of Christ.”
6. “The kerygma always closes with an appeal for repentance, the offer of forgiveness and of the Holy Spirit, and the promise of ‘salvation,’ that is, of ‘the life of the Age to Come,’ to those who enter the elect community” (pp. 21–24).
This sermon begins by addressing the people he is trying to reach.
Men of Israel or Brothers found in ver 29 He begins by talking about the Jesus of Nazareth.
As the NT has developed, the early church often spoke of Christ in this term. The beginning of the movement of God in the lives of the people was all about this Jesus of Nazareth.
Peter spends a few moments on the tension between God’s plan and human’s freedom.
God is sovereign and He works His plan through the hands of man. Peter describes these folks as Lawless man.
The focus does not remain on the acts of Man,
The Good News in this story is this,
24 God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.
This is the first hint of the responsibility of man in the process of Salvation.
The truth of The Gospel is that it all comes from the actions and work of God.
There is nothing we can do to change it, add to it, or claim our part of the Gospel.
The work of Christ on the Cross, His death, God raising Him to life and by that we have been given a gift that is for us to receive.
Peter uses scripture once again to explain that the Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah.
Take note of this
The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 9: John and Acts (b. Kerygma Section (2:22–36))
Taking Psalm 110:1 as an accepted messianic passage and viewing Psalm 16:8–11 as having a similar reference on the basis of the hermeneutical rule of gezērâh šawâh (verbal analogy), Peter proclaims that Psalm 16:10 (“You will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay”) refers to Israel’s promised Messiah and no other.
It is an argument based on the exegetical precedent set by Jesus, inspired by the church’s postresurrection perspective, and worked out along the lines of commonly accepted midrashic principles of the day. Furthermore, Peter insists, David could not have been speaking about himself, for he did indeed die, was buried, and suffered decay—as the presence of his tomb in the city eloquently testifies (v. 29). Nor did he ascend to heaven. Therefore, David must have been prophesying about the resurrection of the Messiah in Psalm 16:10 and about his exaltation in Psalm 110:1. And with God’s raising of Jesus from the dead, these formerly enigmatic passages are clarified and the pouring out of the Spirit explained.
To the Jews listening to this message, clarity was brought forth from these words.
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.”
Peter reaches the main point of the sermon.
This Jesus of Nazareth is both the Christ and Lord.
For some this was the first time that the two words were used to describe Christ. Many hold to the fact that it was after the Resurrection of Christ that his new titles were given to Him.
Jesus was reluctant to accept titles main because, as one person puts it,
The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 9: John and Acts b. Kerygma Section (2:22–36)
Jesus was distinctly reluctant to accept titular acclaim, probably because his understanding of messiahship had to do with suffering and because his concept of lordship had to do with vindication and exaltation by God
Yet now Peter acknowledges to his fellow Jews and those listening, even our audience today.
That the Jesus of Nazareth is both Christ, the messiah that would come to redeem his people and the Lord that was raised by God from the clutches of death and is now at the right hand of God.
The title Christ, not his last name, was
The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 9: John and Acts b. Kerygma Section (2:22–36)
distinctive feature of the church’s witness within Jewish circles, signifying, as it does, his fulfillment of Israel’s hopes and his culmination of God’s redemptive purposes.
We can become redeemed because of the work of God through Jesus who was raised from the dead.
As the well know hymn reminds us
Jesus Paid it all
Jesus paid it all
All to him I owe
Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed it white as snow
Christ is both my Lord and Savior.
Is He Yours?
The Call for Repentance
The Call for Repentance
The last part of Peter’s Sermon was a call.
Peter outlined the purpose of life of the Christ and I love how Luke describes the scene
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?”
Again the key component in any good sermon is not the word, but the action of the Holy Spirit.
26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
God’s Word is proclaimed, but it is the Spirit of God that cuts and convicts.
The Jews has heard Peter’s message and through the Spirit came to realize that they needed a change of heart.
In that anguish, they cried out, “what must we do.”
Tell us, what must we do to be saved.
Let me tell you this, as Peter told those who cried out during his sermon.
Repent, Believe,
God’s promise of Salvation is to all who believe.
It is not something we can earn do but what we can receive.
Each one of us have sin in our lives. This sin, being born with a sinful nature separates us from the Living God.
Entrance into life everlasting, the truth is not how you
enter but what you accept.
Coming to church, having parents as believers, being a good person does not allow you entrance into God’s eternal kingdom.
Like the Jews that day who heard it is not what they have done but what Christ has done for us.
The cost is not ours.
The cost has been paid by Christ. It is a free gift
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Have you accepted this free Gift?
Have you called out like the people did in the text, what must we do.
If you have been coming week after week and hearing about this message but have not accepted the truth for you lives, you must accept.
If you are living your life under the faith of your parents, agreeing with their faith, but have not made this your own, you must accept it for yourselves.
Today, I ask you to make a commitment today.
Today, ask Christ to be your saviour and Lord.
What is stopping you?
Accept his work on the cross, Believe that God raised his from the dead, take the free gift offered to you and you will be saved for an eternity with God.
The gift will also be that God’s Spirit will come and dwell within you.
To do anything else leaves you in the end with nothing. An eternity without the presence of God.
And that my friends in not a place where I wish anyone would be.
Will you today accept this free gift? Give up all those things which stop you put them aside and give your life to Jesus.
PRAYER
This passage also shows that those who followed also were baptized.
Baptism is a public declaration of the faith that you have taken.
The baptism is not the saving act but the public act of identifying with your faith in Christ.
Its an example of being like Christ, being buried and raised from the dead as you come out of the waters of baptism.
For some of you, as believers, you have never taken this step of obedience.
God calls us to make disciples and to baptize them, if you haven’t been baptized, why wait. Talk with me after the service and it would be wonderful to celebrate with those who declare their faith and do it in a and to do it to bring honor and glory to His Name.
In Summary
In Summary
In a moment, as the worship team makes their way up, we are going to live out Acts 2:42
42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.
But let me leave you with this.
Here is the key to a sermon.
Whatever you forms you use, It must be Spirit driven
you see, this passage
The Acts of the Apostles Peter’s Address (2:14–36)
draws attention to the change worked in Peter by the Holy Spirit: “Listen to him preach and argue so boldly, who shortly before had trembled at the word of a servant girl! This boldness is a significant proof of the resurrection of his Master
This same power and boldness that Peter experienced is for us as well.
Let’s move to communion and celebrate together the work of the cross in our lives.
Communion
Communion
Benediction
Benediction