Acts of The Apostles (#2)

Acts 2:1-47

Sermon by Pastor Sylvia Chan

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In Acts chapter 1 we saw that after the resurrection, the Lord Jesus appeared to the eleven apostles (minus Judas) for a period of forty days. He taught them many things concerning the kingdom of God. He told them to stay in Jerusalem to wait for the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and then to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea, in Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth. The apostles returned to Jerusalem, and they chose another disciple Matthias to replace Judas. Today we continue to study Acts chapter 2.

The baptism of The Holy Spirit at Pentecost

^ESV Acts 2:1-13 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. ² And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. ³ And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. ⁴ And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. ⁵ Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. ⁶ And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. ⁷ And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? ⁸ And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? ⁹ Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, ¹⁰ Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, ¹¹ both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” ¹² And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” ¹³ But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.” (Act 2:1-13 ESV)

Here it says in verse 1, “When the day of Pentecost arrived”; the word “Pentecost” (πεντηκοστή) means the fiftieth (50^th) day, which is the Jewish harvest festival held on the fiftieth (50^th) day after the Passover. It is the second of the three great Jewish festivals celebrated at Jerusalem yearly. The Jews from different parts of the world would come to Jerusalem to celebrate this festival.

On the day of Pentecost, the disciples of the Lord Jesus were gathered together in one place, when suddenly a strong wind filled the whole house. Then what seemed to be tongues of fire came to rest on each of them, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different languages. When the other people heard the violent sound, they came out to take a look, and they heard these Galileans speaking in their own languages declaring the mighty deeds of God. The people were amazed, and said to one another, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language?” But some people mocked the disciples, saying, “They are filled with new wine.”

Please take notice here, that from these few statements we see that the languages that the disciples spoke were intelligible words to hearers; this is very different from the speaking in tongues today, where quite often both the people who speak in tongues and the hearers don’t know the meaning of what they are speaking.

Peter’s Sermon

The sermon of Peter goes from Acts 2:14 to Acts 2:36. We divide this sermon into 3 parts: Part 1 from v.14-v.21, part 2 from v.22-v.31, and part 3 from v.32-v.36.

1. The fulfillment of the prophecy proclaimed by the prophet Joel

^ESV Acts 2:14-21 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.” (Act 2:14-21 ESV)

Here it says that Peter stood up with the eleven apostles and declared to the people that they were not drunk, for it was only the third hour (9 o’clock in the morning). It was because on a festival day such as Pentecost, the Jews would not break their fast until at least 10:00 a.m. That’s why Peter said they were not drunk at that time, but rather were filled with the Spirit, this being a fulfillment of the prophecy by the prophet Joel:

^ESV Joel 2:28-32 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. ²⁹ Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit. ³⁰ “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. ³¹ The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD (Yahweh) comes. ³² And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the LORD (Yahweh) shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD (Yahweh) has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the LORD calls. (Joe 2:28-32 ESV)

This passage is speaking to Judah of its deliverance. What happened was that Judah was devastated by the locust plague and the severe drought. People called on Yahweh God for deliverance, and He answered their prayer and delivered them. Here in this passage the prophet Joel said that Yahweh God will pour out His Spirit on all mankind and display wonders in the sky and on the earth. People will see visions; they will prophesy, and dream dreams. And in v.32 the prophet Joel says, “And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the LORD (Yahweh) shall be saved.” The deliverance would extend to anyone who calls on the name of Yahweh God.

In Acts 2 apostle Peter quoted this passage Joel 2:28-32, and explained that the phenomenon on the Day of Pentecost was a fulfillment of this passage. He referred to “all flesh” in Joel 2:28 and “everyone” in Joel 2:32, namely, all the people who call on the name of Yahweh God. And they shall be saved.

2. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the prophecy by David

^ESV Acts 2:22-31 “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. (Act 2:22-31 ESV)

Here apostle Peter pointed out that Jesus was attested by God with miracles and wonders and signs, but Israel crucified him. Even King David had called Jesus “Lord” and prophesied the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

3. God has made Jesus both Lord and Christ

^ESV Acts 2:32-36 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.” (Act 2:32-36 ESV)

In this passage, apostle Peter said that Jesus had been raised from the dead, and that Peter himself and the other disciples were eyewitnesses of it. Yahweh God had made Jesus both Lord and Christ. (The term “Christ” refers to the Son of Yahweh God and the king of the people of God; please refer to my other sermon “The Messiah” in “The Titles of Jesus Christ” in http://www.GospelAndSalvation.com.)

The People’s response

^ESV Acts 2:37-47 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. ⁴² And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. ⁴³ And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. ⁴⁴ And all who believed were together and had all things in common. ⁴⁵ And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. ⁴⁶ And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, ⁴⁷ praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. (Act 2:37-47 ESV)

Here this passage says that after the people had listened to Peter’s sermon, they were pierced to the heart, and asked Peter what they should do. Peter exhorted them to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, and they will receive the Holy Spirit. Then three thousand people repented and were baptized on that day. Those who were baptized continued devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship with one another, to the breaking of bread (the communion) and to prayer. They sold their properties and possessions and were sharing them with all. Day by day they continued with one mind, breaking bread from house to house; they took their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart. And the Lord was adding more and more people to their number day by day.

Conclusion

Now let’s sum up everything:

• The disciples of the Lord Jesus experienced baptism with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, and started speaking in different tongues declaring the works of God.
• Apostle Peter and the other disciples declared to the people that the speaking in tongues was the fulfillment of the prophecy by the prophet Joel, and that the resurrection of the Lord Jesus was a fulfillment of the prophecy by David; and that Yahweh God had made Jesus both Lord and Christ.
• Three thousand people repented and were baptized on that day.
• All the disciples devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship with one another. They shared their possessions together.
• The Lord was adding to their number day by day.