INTRODUCTION

This passage is about the power of Jesus to completely forgive sinners. Jesus did not die and rise again in order to make forgiveness a possibility. He did not die and rise again in order that if you do your part, He will do His. No, He died and rose again in order to raise powerless-lame sinners from their guilt and shame, in order to guarantee that times of refreshing would come from the presence of the Lord.

The Text: “Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour. And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful…” (Acts 3:1-26)

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

As Peter and John go to the temple for prayers, Peter heals a lame man begging, who immediately begins walking and leaping and praising God (Acts 3:1-8). This causes quite a commotion, and Peter sees another opportunity to preach the death and resurrection of Jesus and the power of faith in His name (Acts 3:9-16). Peter says that while the Jews and their leaders crucified Jesus in ignorance, it was all part of God’s plan to bring times of refreshing from His presence (Acts 3:17-21). Jesus is the Prophet that Moses foretold would come, along with Samuel and all the prophets, whom God promised Abraham by covenant would come for the blessing of all the families of the earth (Acts 3:22-26).

APOSTOLIC AUTHORITY

Remember that Jesus told the apostles that they would receive power to be His authoritative witnesses of the resurrection to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8, cf. 3:15). We believe that God still performs wonders and miracles, but the apostles had the unique authority to command it as proof of that authority, as we see here when Peter heals the lame man (Acts 3:6). This particular miracle echoes one of the early healings of Jesus when the lame man was let down through a roof and Jesus proved that He had the authority to forgive sins by commanding him to rise and walk (Lk. 5:18-26). This miracle is not merely a generic power; it is the personal power of Jesus at work (Acts 3:12), which is why Peter commands “in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth” (Acts 3:6) and preaches that it was “through faith in his name” that healed the man (Acts 3:16). But Peter insists that the point of the power is the same as what Jesus insisted on: the forgiveness of sins (Acts 3:19, 26).

REPENTANCE & TIMES OF REFRESHING

The specific command that Peter gives in conjunction with the testimony of the resurrection is: repent and be converted (Acts 3:19). “Repent” literally means to change your mind and “convert” means to turn or turn around. Biblically, when we describe Christian repentance, we mean both of these actions. In Ephesians 4, Paul describes this in terms of putting off and putting on: putting off the old man and putting on the new man, putting away lying and telling the truth, etc. (Eph. 4:22-29). One puritan summarized biblical repentance as sight of sin, sorrow for sin, confession of sin, shame for sin, hatred for sin, and turning from sin, and he said: “If any one is left out it loses its virtue.” Many people feel sorry for sin (at least its consequences), maybe they even feel some shame, but they frequently stop short of hatred, confession, and real change, and so they have not really repented and this is why they have not experienced “times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord” (Acts 3:19). Often the temptation is to do just enough towards repentance to start feeling better or get others to leave you alone but not enough to actually finish the job.

THE POTENCY OF JESUS

Do not misunderstand: the gospel is not that you must turn over a new leaf, try harder, or make some lifestyle changes. Nor is it that if you do your part, God will do His. The gospel is that Jesus suffered for sinners and rose from the dead in order to raise sinners from the dead. In your sins, you are the lame man begging at the temple gate, from your mother’s womb. You were conceived in iniquity; you cannot lift yourself up to God or please Him. But God sent His Son to be wounded for our transgressions, to be bruised for our iniquities, so that by His stripes we might be healed (Is. 53:5). And the point is that the command to “repent” is the same as the command given to the lame man to rise up and walk. You can’t unless you have believed in His name. But even that faith is a gift from God (Eph. 2:8). So this is why the Bible describes this power of conversion like God’s command “let there be light.” It is what is sometimes called a performative command: God’s power is resident in the command: “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of the darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6).

While the apostles had the unique power to do miracles, proving that they were authorized witnesses, the gospel continues to be “the power of God unto salvation” for everyone who believes (Rom. 1:16). God “sends” Jesus in the preaching of the gospel (Acts 3:20), and Jesus blesses those who receive Him in turning you from your iniquities (Acts 3:26). The power to turn, the power to repent is all in Jesus. We proclaim Jesus crucified for sin and raised from the dead and command everyone everywhere to repent that their sins may be blotted out, and everyone who does, does so by the power of Jesus.

CONCLUSION

In the Old Covenant, the priests came from Aaron’s family, but anyone who was lame was not allowed to go into the Most Holy Place or offer anything on the altar to the Lord (Lev. 21:18-23). Part of what is signified here in this healing is the access to God that has been won by Jesus. By His wounds we are healed, and by His blood, we may draw near into the Holy of Holies; we may enter that Beautiful Gate with complete confidence and joy, walking and leaping and praising God, with hearts washed completely clean.

So what is in your file? When God pulls up your file in Heaven, what’s in there? Is it all your filth? All your evil thoughts, words, actions? Or does it say, “Holy One, Completely Righteous, Well-beloved Son, Blessed of God?” If you have been turned away from your sin, than you have only done so by the power that turns you completely toward Christ. To be turned toward Christ is to have His light shining full blast on your heart. So that your file is now filled with praise.

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INTRODUCTION

In this famous text, Jesus pours out His Spirit on His people, and the apostles, led by Peter, begin to testify boldly that Jesus is risen from the dead and is Lord and Christ of the world.

THE TEXT

“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing, mighty wind, and it filled the house…” (Acts 2:1-36)

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

On the day of Pentecost, the fiftieth day after Passover (Lev. 23:16), the sound of a great wind filled the place where the disciples were meeting and flames of fire appeared over each of them, and they began speaking in other languages (Acts 2:1-4). Since it was one of the great feasts of Israel, there many visitors in Jerusalem from at least 13 regions, “out of every nation under heaven,” and they were amazed and bewildered to hear these Galileans speaking about the mighty works of God in their native languages (Acts 2:5-12).

Some mocked them as being drunk, but Peter stood up with the other apostles, and said that they were not drunk but what they were witnessing had been foretold by the Prophet Joel concerning God’s Spirit and the Day of the Lord (Acts 2:13-21). This pouring out of the Spirit is proof that the man Jesus of Nazareth whom they had recently killed was alive from the dead (Acts 2:22-24).

David had foretold both that the Messiah would not remain in the grave/Hades, and that his descendant would be the Messiah who would sit on his throne (Acts 2:25-30). Peter says that these are prophesies of the resurrection: the apostles are witnesses that Jesus rose from the dead and the Spirit is proof that He is at God’s right hand and therefore, God has made Him both Lord and Christ (Acts 2:31-36).

THE DAY OF PENTECOST

The day of Pentecost is full of imagery that communicates what God is up to. The rushing wind is reminiscent of the original creation when the “wind/Spirit” of God hovered over the darkness (Gen. 1:2). It is reminiscent of the wind that blew over the earth after the flood, preparing a new world for Noah (Gen. 8:1). It reminds us of the rushing mighty wind that blew all night long, causing the waters of the Red Sea to pile up like walls and create dry ground for Israel to pass through (Ex. 14:21). In Ezekiel, it’s the mighty Spirit-wind that causes the dry bones to become a living army (Ez. 37:9-10). Or we might remember that the Lord finally spoke to Job out of the whirlwind (Job 38:1). All of these signal to us themes of new creation.

But the fire is also part of the messaging: God’s presence was a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night for Israel as they left Egypt and passed through the wilderness (Ex. 13:21-22, Num. 14:14). It was that same fire presence that came down on Mt. Sinai, and then rested above the tabernacle and later filled the temple at its dedication by Solomon (Ex. 19:18, 40:34-38, 1 Kgs. 8:10-11). A whirlwind and chariots and horses of fire that took Elijah into Heaven (2 Kgs. 2:11). And finally, the different languages signify both a sort of overcoming of Babel as well as a similar sort of judgment (Is. 28:11, Joel 2:28-30, 1 Cor. 14:21-22). The fire proclaims the fierceness of God’s presence: His holiness, His righteousness and justice. Think of the burning bush, but now people are His holy ground.

THE TESTIMONY OF THE SPIRIT

Remember Jesus had quoted John who said He was going to baptize the apostles with the Spirit and fire (Mt. 3:11) in order to give the apostles the particular power of being His witnesses – particularly of His resurrection – beginning in Jerusalem all the way to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:4-5, 8). And so Peter’s sermon begins to do just that, beginning by citing the Prophet Joel who foretold the Day of the Lord, describing the end of a nation/era using apocalyptic, world-ending language like other prophets and marked by the Spirit speaking through visions and dreams and prophesying (Joel 2:28-30, cf. Is. 13, Ez. 32).

Peter turns immediately to preaching Jesus, whom he says was “delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain” (Acts 2:23). It’s worth noting that Peter proclaims what we believe, which is that God has ordained and predestined every single detail of whatsoever comes to pass (cf. Eph. 1:11, Mt. 10:29-30) and yet God does no evil and human beings are fully responsible for their own choices (cf. Js. 1:13, 1 Jn. 1:5). It’s also worth noting that Peter says that all the Jews gathered in front of him collectively, covenantally crucified Christ, even though some of them were no doubt not personally present or directly involved.

For the rest of the message Peter cites three Psalms of David as additional support for what is happening: first, David prophesied of One who would die but not see any decay in the grave (Ps. 16:8-11), second, God’s promise that One from David’s line would sit on David’s throne forever (Ps. 132:11-12), and finally, since David had died and all of his descendants, he must have been talking about a descendant who was his superior, David’s own “Lord” and that Lord was offered a seat at God’s own right hand (Ps. 110:1). Peter musters these texts to proclaim that by His resurrection, God has proclaimed Jesus to be Lord and Messiah of Israel (Acts 2:36).

APPLICATIONS

It really is striking to read this sermon from Peter, who only a few weeks previous had denied the Lord Jesus. Jesus had restored Peter (Jn. 21), but what accounts for this sudden “boldness?” The answer of course is the Holy Spirit, but notice what the Spirit of Jesus is driving and empowering Peter with: Scripture. The Word of God is the flammable material that the Spirit loves to ignite. And when it goes up, it goes up with boldness and courage.

If Peter can drive this message right into the midst of the Jews, then this message can be driven right into the center of every human heart. Even if we are not part of that covenant people, we have our own covenantal allegiances, and our covenant people would have done the same thing as the house of Israel. But God has raised Jesus from the dead and made Him both Lord and Christ. So what will you do with this? Whose side are you on?

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We apologize for the poor audio in this week’s recording.

INTRODUCTION

Acts is the record of what Jesus continued to do and teach, and this includes the seemingly mundane, ordinary work of prayer, Bible reading, gathering together with God’s people, and obeying Him. The Risen Jesus works through these ordinary means.

THE TEXT

“In those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,) Men and brethren…” (Acts 1:15-26).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Sometime during the ten days between the Ascension and Pentecost, Peter stood up to speak in the midst of the eleven remaining apostles, the women, and about a hundred and twenty disciples (Acts 1:15). Peter cites what the Holy Spirit said in portions of Psalm 69 and 109 that address their situation with the loss of Judas (Acts 1:16-17, 20). Luke reviews what happened to Judas, recounting different details than Matthew. But the differences are easily accounted for: Judas hung himself in such a violent way that his bowels gushed out, and the money he had taken to betray Jesus was used to purchase that field, which became a burial ground for strangers (Acts 1:18-19, cf. Mt. 27:3-10). Peter says that another should be chosen to take his place, a man who was with them from the baptism of John until the ascension, a witness of the resurrection (Acts 1:21-22). Two men are selected that fit those criteria, Barsabas and Matthias, and after praying for the leading of Jesus, lots are cast and Matthias is chosen (Acts 1:23-26).

APOSTOLIC CREDENTIALS

It’s in the context of worship and community that the Lord leads the Church to recognize a need to replace Judas through what was written by David in the Psalms. This need was probably first raised simply by the way Jesus had spoken about the number twelve itself (e.g. Lk. 22:29-30, Mt. 19:28, Mk. 14:20, Jn. 6:70), implying that Jesus intended that number on purpose as the foundation of a new Kingdom of Israel (cf. Rom. 11, Rev. 21:12-14, Eph. 2:20).

The purpose of this office is clearly repeated: to bear witness of the entire ministry of Jesus from His baptism to His ascension, and a witness of the resurrection in particular (Acts 1:22). This means apostles had authority to oversee/write Scripture, and God authenticated that authority by giving them the power to perform extraordinary signs (Mt. 10:1, Lk. 9:1, Acts 5:12, cf. 2 Cor. 12:12).

But this raises the question of Paul, who acknowledged that he was “born out of due time” and the “least of the apostles” and not worthy to be called an apostle (1 Cor. 15:8-9). And yet, Paul insisted that he was in fact an apostle, “not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead” (Gal. 1:1) and not at all inferior to the original apostles (2 Cor. 11:5, 12:11). So an apostle is an eyewitness of the resurrection of Jesus and proven by miracles. Paul became an eyewitness of the resurrection when he saw Jesus alive on the road to Damascus (Acts 9, 22, 26), and Jesus proved that by giving Paul the apostolic power to perform miracles (2 Cor. 12:12). This is why we believe that the office of apostle was only operative in the first century. They were the foundation of the Church (Eph. 2:20). The apostles ordained elders in the churches as their successors, but there is no “apostolic line,” much less a successor to Peter, as the Roman Church claims.

READING SCRIPTURE FAITHFULLY

Peter’s argument raises questions about biblical interpretation: How did Peter know that Psalm 69 and 109 were about Judas? Could these psalms also be applied to a modern enemy? The first rule of biblical interpretation is that Jesus is Lord of it. It is His Spirit that inspired all of it (Acts 1:16). We must come to the Word in complete submission. Second, and closely related, this means that we should seek to let Scripture interpret Scripture. Wherever Scripture comments on other Scriptures, that is an authoritative interpretation. And we should seek to imitate that method. Third, we know that when Jesus rose from the dead, He taught His disciples from all the Old Testament scriptures the things concerning Himself (Lk. 24:26-27), and Jesus Himself quoted the Old Testament repeatedly throughout His ministry, claiming that it was being fulfilled in Him (cf. Mt. 5:18, Jn. 10:35). Fourth, Jesus quoted Psalms in particular, a number of times, applying them to Himself, including Psalm 69:4 in John 15:25: “They hated me without a cause.” The disciples would also remember Psalm 69:9 and apply it to the cleansing of the temple (Jn. 2:17). Given that Jesus had already applied Psalm 69 to Himself, it would be no great jump to apply a similar Psalm (like Ps. 109) to Judas and Jesus and the apostleship. So we can speak of an original, literal/historic meaning of texts, prophetic/Messianic meanings/fulfillments of a text, and often, there are fruitful applications to our day.

CONCLUSIONS & APPLICATIONS

This text highlights the way the Spirit of Jesus drives history forward through how people respond to His Word. Judas became infamous for his greed, treachery, and then finally despair. Peter took up a leadership position through repentance, prayer, and Bible reading/teaching. Matthias receives the high honor of being the twelfth apostle, and then we never hear about him in Scripture again (although tradition says he was the apostle to Ethiopia).

While they were obediently waiting for the promise of the Father, the disciples weren’t doing nothing. They gathered together for prayer and Scripture reading (Acts 1:14-15). In some respects this is the position of the modern church: our culture is crumbling and appears ready for severe judgment. We are praying and working for Reformation, but in the meantime, while we wait for God’s decision, we gather together in prayer around the Word, looking to obey.

The ordinary way we grow up in our obedience to Christ is in community studying the Word. Even though we are saved by ones, there are no solo Christians. We are saved into a body, into a community. This is what church membership means (Heb. 13:7, 17). This worshiping community is the center of a thriving Christian life. Sometimes, God’s people must wait on decisions, but this doesn’t mean doing nothing in the meantime. Be obedient in the meantime: gather with God’s people around the Word and prayers and then obey Jesus.

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INTRODUCTION

When Jesus ascended, He promised that when He got to Heaven, He would prove it by baptizing His people with the Holy Spirit, making them powerful witnesses of His resurrection and the Kingdom. He did, and then they did. And that’s how we’re here.

THE TEXT

“And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father…” (Acts 1:4-14).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

On the day of His ascension, Jesus instructed His apostles to wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit, which John had promised at the beginning of His ministry (Acts 1:4-5). The apostles asked if this would be when God restored the kingdom to Israel, and Jesus said that time was not for them to know (Acts 1:6-7). But what they could know was that they would receive power soon when the Holy Spirit was given to them, to be witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). After this, Jesus was taken up into Heaven, and two angels appeared promising that He would one day return in the same physical, visible manner (Acts 1:9-11). So the apostles returned to Jerusalem, and began waiting and praying together in an upper room (Acts 1:12-14).

THE PROMISE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

John had promised at the baptism of Jesus that One mightier than him was coming who would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire (Matt. 3, Mk. 1, Lk. 3). In some ways, the answer to the question, ‘Why did Jesus come?’ is: ‘To give us the Holy Spirit.’ And this implies that the only way to give people the Holy Spirit was to be crucified for their sins, rise from the dead, and ascend to the right hand of the Father. This is because the Holy Spirit is the full fellowship of God with us (1 Jn. 3:24, 4:13).

Jesus was full of the Spirit throughout His ministry (Lk. 3:22, 4:1, 4:14, 4:18), culminating in His Ascension (Heb. 9:14), and so He is able to baptize with the Spirit with full authority. In fact, Jesus had told the disciples that the promised Spirit of the Father is His Spirit (Jn. 14:16-18, 14:26, 15:26-27).

The promise of the Spirit goes back to the Old Testament: The Root of Jesse, the Lord’s Servant, would be full of the Spirit (Is. 11:1-2, 42:1, 61:1). And because He was full of the Spirit, He would pour that Spirit out on Israel and on their children forever (Is. 44:3, 59:21). Ezekiel promised that God would give Israel a new heart and a new spirit, and He would put His Spirit inside them so that they would obey God’s laws (Ez. 36:26-27, cf. 37:14).

BAPTISM AND THE SPIRIT

In the history of the Church, the temptation has been to either separate water baptism and Spirit baptism or else collapse them into the same thing. But Scripture holds them together while distinguishing between the outward actions of men, and the inward actions of Jesus and His Spirit. Paul says, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body… and have been all made to drink into one Spirit” (1 Cor. 12:13). But Jesus says that those branches that bear fruit “abide” in Him (Jn. 15:4). And we abide in Him by abiding in His Word (Jn. 15:3, 7).

Calvin says: For when these titles are attributed to baptism, namely that it is the laver of regeneration (Tit. 3:5), a washing away of sins (Acts 22:16), the fellowship of death and burying with Christ (Rom. 6:4), and a grafting into the body of Christ (cf. Rom. 11), it is not declared what man, being the minister of the outward sign, does, but rather what Christ does, who only gives force and efficacy unto the signs.” So outward water baptism is a true sign of the promises of God which is meant to point us directly to Christ.

THE AUTHORIZED TESTIMONY

The particular mission of the Spirit initially in the apostles is to give them the power/authority to be witnesses of Jesus from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Many have pointed out that this also serves as a rough outline of Luke’s work: Jerusalem (Acts 1-7, Judea and Samaria (Acts 8-12), and the whole known world (Acts 13-28). At the same time, this also highlights an implied assignment: the apostles needed to make sure that their testimony reached Argentina, Japan, and Idaho. How would that happen? A quick study of the Old Testament scriptures answers the question easily: they would write it down (Ex. 24:4, 25:16, 31:18, 34:29). The law of God was to be written on doorposts and city gates, and kings were to write down their own copies of the book of the law (Dt. 6:9, 17:18, Josh. 1:8).

So the Spirit was given to the apostles initially to give them the power and authority to write the New Testament. This was not an afterthought; this was their job as witnesses (cf. 2 Pet. 3:15-16). In Paul’s final letter in the mid-60s A.D., he asks Timothy to bring the “parchments” which were probably copies of all of his letters, if not other apostolic scriptures as well (2 Tim. 4:13). He also notes that Luke is with him (who had access to Matthew and Mark and wrote Luke and Acts), and Paul asks for Timothy to bring Mark with him (2 Tim. 4:11). Tradition places Peter in Rome around the same time, and assuming they all met up, this accounts for most of the New Testament and perhaps John oversaw the final compilation (Rev. 22:18-19, cf.). The New Testament was not a haphazard afterthought; it was the direct result of Jesus giving His Spirit to His eyewitnesses. We are an “apostolic” church because we obey the testimony of the apostles.

CONCLUSION

Numbers describes the war camp of Israel with the tabernacle at the center with the fire-presence of God in their midst, directing the movements of Israel (Num. 9:15-23). While the Spirit of God was with Israel and occasionally came upon various individuals (e.g. Samson), the glory of the New Covenant is that Spirit of Jesus is inside individuals, leading, guiding, teaching.

And the center of this leading, guiding, and teaching is found in the words of Jesus found in the Spirit-empowered words of the Apostles. If His Word abides in you, then He abides in you, and now you are a powerful witness of the resurrection also.

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