Good morning,
How did God transform the disciples of Christ? They were baptized by the Holy Ghost. Who stepped up and preached the first sermon of the church age? Peter did. It is found in Acts 2:14-47. We will focus in on Peter’s sermon.
Peter’s preaching at Pentecost
Prophecy of Joel (2:14-21, Joel 2:28-32)
But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:15 For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon 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 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke:20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and notable day of the Lord come:21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.
The prophet Joel prophesied that the Spirit of God would be poured out on all believers. The purpose was that believers would have the boldness to tell others about Jesus Christ. The end result being men and women, boys and girls, would call upon the name of the Lord and be saved.
The last days refers to the time from Christ’s resurrection all the way to the end of the church age.
Are we willing to allow the Spirit of God to work through us to lead unbelievers to Christ? Please remember, it is our responsibility to tell others about Christ, the Spirit of God’s responsibility to convict unbelievers of their need for salvation, and Jesus’ responsibility to bring them to salvation. We do not win souls. God does.
God raised up Jesus (2:22-24)
22 Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: 23 Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: 24 Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.
Peter now expounds on Joel’s prophesy. He explains who Jesus is, a man approved of by God, who did miracles, wonders, and signs, in their presence. How these evil men had Jesus crucified and how God raised Him from the dead. Peter always brings them back to the resurrection.
God is still in the business of doing the miraculous. Every soul won to Christ since Pentecost is a miracle in itself. The very fact that, believers in Christ, go to heaven when we die, instead of hell, is a miracle of God.
I fear we take these acts of God for granted. Yet we do not deserve the breath we breathe apart from the miraculous blood sacrifice Jesus made on the cross for us. We live today because of what Christ did for us. But Jesus didn’t just give us life, He empowered us to live life. He baptized us with the Holy Spirit of God. We have the Spirit of God living within us. The Spirit of God leads us, guides us, and comforts us.
Allow the Holy Spirit to lead, guide, and comfort you today.
Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com
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