Connections



Acts 2:16-24
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;
18even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.
19And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;
20the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.
21And 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.

In the New Testament narrative, Peter’s story is so very compelling. We meet the young fisherman as Jesus invites him to become a follower, a Disciple. Peter accepts that invitation and his life is forever changed. During his three years with Jesus we find Peter to be the impetuous one. He’s the guy who wants to join Jesus walking on the water during a storm. He’s the guy who volunteers to build a couple of shelters on the mount of Transfiguration. And he’s the guy who cuts off the ear of a soldier during Jesus’ arrest. Now he’s the guy who delivers a sermon that changes lives. Imagine that moment when all that you had learned during your childhood about the Old Testament suddenly slams into focus because of what you had learned from Jesus. Of course that moment of instant clarity would inspire this epic sermon. Peter is apparently speaking to a largely Jewish crowd and he deftly brings the Old Testament prophecy, King David, and the redeeming work of Jesus together in a brilliant exposition of the faith.

For the Jewish audience to whom he speaks, Peter uses the words of the prophet Joel to explain what is happening to all of them. These people would have accepted the words of Joel without question and knew that these were holy Words. For Peter to connect the arrival of the Holy Spirit with these prophetic words was magnificent and inspired. He then ties the reign of King David with the Kingdom of God that has arrived in the Person of Jesus Christ. Even the crucifixion is tied to God’s purpose and plan. He leans in on the fact that the grave still held the body of their great King David, but Jesus was already free from the bondage of His borrowed tomb. He had been resurrected just as King David had prophesied! The perfection of this message cannot be overstated.

One of the misnomers about Christians is that we believe once we turn our lives over to God we will be care-free and happy forever. Of course, that is ridiculous and anyone who has been a Christian for more than 10 minutes knows this just isn’t true. In our reading for today, we find Peter and John helping the new church understand their place in the world. It’s not an easy place as the Lord of Glory Himself experienced while on the earth. But all of it – ALL OF IT – was God’s plan. And that plan was carried out by all the people of the earth; government and religious leaders, Jews and Gentiles. None are innocent. But in the face of the facts the early Church Fathers still prayed vehemently “to continue to speak Your Word with all boldness”. It’s a hard prayer to pray because we want life to be easy.

Throughout the book of Acts, we witness miracle after miracle. This sermon is certainly one of them. I hope that Peter holds a seminar when we get to heaven because I would love to hear him talk about this moment. This had to be the greatest “ah ha” moments of all time.

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