The Foundation Stone of Christianity
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 shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children and to all that are far off, every one whom the Lord our God calls to him."
Acts 2:38-39
Luke begins the story with the resurrection of Jesus. This one fact is the hope of the gospel. Without the resurrection, our faith is a fallacy. Even though Jesus had taught his disciples for three years before his death, it was obvious that they did not “get it”. What did they do after his crucifixion? They went fishing. They returned to their former life. No wonder Jesus had to spend another 40 days on earth with them after the resurrection to teach them that he was still alive. His message was for them to wait. Their questions were still from their own mindset. They asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” (1:6) They were still looking for him to make Israel the ruler over all the earth. His answer was to wait until the Holy Spirit would reveal in them the truth of God’s kingdom. They were to become witnesses. The apostles never really “got it” by their observation of the events that unfolded around them. It was only by the revelation of the Holy Spirit that the spiritual nature of the kingdom was made know to the world in Acts 2. The same thing is true of us today. We never really understand God except by being born again into his kingdom and receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit.
It is important for us to realize, at the beginning of this study, that the Holy Spirit, often mentioned as acting in the Book of Acts, is actually the continuing presence of Jesus with them. While God the Father, and Jesus the Son, are two persons, spiritually they are one. Every spiritual aspect of them was identical. The Hebrew writer says Jesus was the exact image of God. So the reception of the Holy Spirit is receiving both the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
Finally, the time came for Jesus to leave them physically. The visible ascension was necessary for these men to actually understand that He, in leaving them physically, was not leaving them spiritually. God does many things to accommodate our childlike inability to understand spiritual dimensions. Heaven is not "up there", but the disciples had to view it that way in order to satisfy their limited understanding and give them the courage to go on.
The events of the day of Pentecost were the culmination of God’s design to inaugurate a new dispensation. No wonder its coming was so spectacular. A mighty rushing wind and tongues of flames were God’s exclamation point via sight and sound! First, let us note the nature of the Spirit they received. In Chapter 2 verse 17, Peter, quoting Joel the prophet, says God said, "I will pour out my Spirit on all people". Secondly, this is identified as God's Spirit. In verse 33, Peter says the exalted Jesus received from the Father His Holy Spirit by which He is causing what you see and hear. In the beginning God gave to His only begotten Son the creative power, and with this He created all things. John tells us all things were created by Him. Here, we are told that the Father gave to the Son His Holy Spirit, and, as He used the creative power in the beginning, He now sends His Holy Spirit to guide and empower those who choose to follow Him. The Father and Son still acting as one in accomplishing the purposes of Heaven.
Third, the Spirit of God and of Jesus (one and the same) will be given to all, for Peter says that those who accept Christ will "receive the gift of the Holy Spirit". The significance of this is that, just as the Spirit enabled the Apostles to do what Jesus wanted them to do, so God's Spirit, indwelling us, will enable us to do what He wants us to do also. But, God made us free moral creatures, so the choice of letting His Spirit enable us is still up to us.
Peter's sermon was simple. This Jesus was the fulfillment of all the prophecies of the Old Testament. God proved Him to be authentic by the miracles and signs which you have seen Him do. You killed Him, but God raised Him up, and made Him both Lord and Christ. In other words, "He is the promised Messiah". This is the foundation of all that we believe. This is the message of the gospel.
It is important for us to realize, at the beginning of this study, that the Holy Spirit, often mentioned as acting in the Book of Acts, is actually the continuing presence of Jesus with them. While God the Father, and Jesus the Son, are two persons, spiritually they are one. Every spiritual aspect of them was identical. The Hebrew writer says Jesus was the exact image of God. So the reception of the Holy Spirit is receiving both the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
Finally, the time came for Jesus to leave them physically. The visible ascension was necessary for these men to actually understand that He, in leaving them physically, was not leaving them spiritually. God does many things to accommodate our childlike inability to understand spiritual dimensions. Heaven is not "up there", but the disciples had to view it that way in order to satisfy their limited understanding and give them the courage to go on.
The events of the day of Pentecost were the culmination of God’s design to inaugurate a new dispensation. No wonder its coming was so spectacular. A mighty rushing wind and tongues of flames were God’s exclamation point via sight and sound! First, let us note the nature of the Spirit they received. In Chapter 2 verse 17, Peter, quoting Joel the prophet, says God said, "I will pour out my Spirit on all people". Secondly, this is identified as God's Spirit. In verse 33, Peter says the exalted Jesus received from the Father His Holy Spirit by which He is causing what you see and hear. In the beginning God gave to His only begotten Son the creative power, and with this He created all things. John tells us all things were created by Him. Here, we are told that the Father gave to the Son His Holy Spirit, and, as He used the creative power in the beginning, He now sends His Holy Spirit to guide and empower those who choose to follow Him. The Father and Son still acting as one in accomplishing the purposes of Heaven.
Third, the Spirit of God and of Jesus (one and the same) will be given to all, for Peter says that those who accept Christ will "receive the gift of the Holy Spirit". The significance of this is that, just as the Spirit enabled the Apostles to do what Jesus wanted them to do, so God's Spirit, indwelling us, will enable us to do what He wants us to do also. But, God made us free moral creatures, so the choice of letting His Spirit enable us is still up to us.
Peter's sermon was simple. This Jesus was the fulfillment of all the prophecies of the Old Testament. God proved Him to be authentic by the miracles and signs which you have seen Him do. You killed Him, but God raised Him up, and made Him both Lord and Christ. In other words, "He is the promised Messiah". This is the foundation of all that we believe. This is the message of the gospel.
posted by Bradford L. Stevens @ 7:39 AM
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