Preaching in Acts: Peter on Pentecost I. Base Text: Acts 2:14-36, 40 II. Context A. Pentecost 1. The Feast of Shavuot / Weeks 2. Leviticus 23:15-22 3. A thanksgiving feast for the harvest (Numbers 28:26) 4. Also became known as traditional date when Moses, Israel received the Ten Commandments from God at Sinai (Exodus 19:1, 20:1-20) 5. Therefore, a festival for which many Jews would travel to Jerusalem to celebrate B. Pentecost 30 or 33 CE 1. Jesus of Nazareth present in Jerusalem for the Passover, executed, raised from the dead (Luke 19:28-24:48) 2. In the resurrection, Jesus instructed the twelve regarding how Moses, the psalms, and the prophets spoke of Him and His acts and promised they would represent His witnesses to the world, and to remain in Jerusalem until clothed with power from on high, the baptism of the Holy Spirit (Luke 24:49-53, Acts 1:1-8) 3. Ten days before Pentecost, Jesus ascended to Heaven (Acts 1:9-11) 4. On the day of Pentecost, promised baptism of the Holy Spirit takes place: tongues as of fire upon the Apostles, who are then filled with the Spirit, begin speaking in tongues (Acts 2:1-4) C. Preaching Situation 1. Jews from all over the Mediterranean world present in Jerusalem for Pentecost, hear the Apostles speaking the wondrous acts of God in their own languages (Acts 2:5-6, 11) 2. Representatives from three continents (Acts 2:7-11) a. Europe: Romans, Cretans b. Africa: Egyptians, Libyans near Cyrene c. Asia: Parthians, Medes, Elamites, Mesopotamians, Judeans, Cappadocians, residents of Pontus, Asians, Phrygians, Pamphylians, Arabians 3. The crowd is amazed and astounded, wanting to know what it means (Acts 2:12) 4. Some mock, declaring they are drunk with new wine (Acts 2:13) D. At this time Peter begins to preach (Acts 2:14-36, 40) 1. His audience is an unknown number of Jews from throughout the Mediterranean and Mesopotamian worlds 2. The Apostles, men of Galilee, are proclaiming the works of God in the various languages of the Mediterranean and Mesopotamian world, which has caused amazement among the Jews and has gained their attention 3. All wonder what is going on; some have claimed the Apostles are drunken and thus not honorable, and so Peter must respond, and respond he does! III. Peter's Preaching: Substance and Structure A. Introduction, Explanation of Immediate Event (Acts 2:14-21) 1. Summons (Acts 2:14): Peter addresses men of Jerusalem and Judea, asking them to listen to him 2. Refutation of false charge (Acts 2:15): Apostles are not drunk, for it is only the third hour (0900) 3. Explanatory reference (Acts 2:16-21): Identification of what the people are witnessing with prophecy of Joel in Joel 2:28-32 a. Outpouring of the Spirit upon the people b. Eschatological events expected with the coming of the Messiah c. Peter explicitly identifies baptism of Spirit on that day with what Joel predicted: not "beginning of," not "taste of," but "this is" d. What Peter does not quote as important as what he quotes: ends quotation before end of section (for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those that escape, as YHWH hath said, and among the remnant those whom YHWH doth call, Joel 2:32b) e. "Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved" provides perfect transition into Peter's core message, the declaration of Jesus as Lord and how to obtain salvation in His name B. Core Message: Witness of Jesus' Life, Death, Resurrection (Acts 2:22-35) 1. Summons (Acts 2:22a): Peter again addresses men of Judea, asks them to listen to his words; rhetorical device to emphasize importance of what is to come 2. Statement of Argument (Acts 2:22b-24): Jesus' life, death, and resurrection a. Peter depends on audience's existing knowledge of Jesus of Nazareth and what He accomplished b. Suggests Jesus' approval by God a priori on basis of audience's knowledge of the signs and wonders which He performed c. Recognition of His death, yet declaration that it happened according to God's determinate counsel and foreknowledge, and was accomplished by the hands of lawless men: demonstration that Jesus did not deserve to die and yet His death was no accident d. Declaration that God raised Jesus up since it was impossible for death to hold on to Him 3. Prophetic Proof #1 with Explanation (Acts 2:25-31): David's declaration in Psalm 16:8-11, demonstration that David does not speak of himself but the Messiah to come a. Psalm 16:10 as direct proof of claim in Acts 2:24: God would not see the Messiah's soul left in Sheol, nor would He see corruption b. Peter demonstrates that while David wrote the psalm, he foresees its application to the Messiah, since David is dead and buried, and therefore cannot be the one concerning whom Psalm 16:8-11 is written c. David trusted that God would set his descendant on his throne (2 Samuel 7:11-16, Psalms 89:3-4, 35-36, 132:11) d. Sure, Solomon, etc., but also foreseeing the Messiah and His reign e. Conclusion: David predicts the resurrection of the Christ/ Messiah/King in Psalm 16:8-11! 4. Witness and Full Explanation (Acts 2:32-33): Apostles as witnesses of Jesus' resurrection, Jesus as Lord, Source of the outpouring of the Spirit a. As Jesus had promised, so it happened: Peter and Apostles testifying as witnesses of the resurrection (Luke 24:48, Acts 1:8) b. Declaration of Jesus' exaltation, promise of the gift of the Spirit (cf. John 14:26, 15:26, 16:13-15) c. Peter thus connects the entire narrative together: Jesus' life, death, resurrection, lordship has now led to the outpouring of the Spirit 5. Prophetic Proof #2 (Acts 2:34-35): David's words in Psalm 110:1 a. Demonstration that it was not David who ascended b. If not David, then the Messiah, by common confession and expectation c. Implicit: the Messiah is David's Lord as well (cf. Luke 20:41-44) C. Declaration of Jesus' Lordship, Audience Response (Acts 2:36-39) 1. Summons (Acts 2:36a): Appeal to the house of Israel 2. Summation of Core Message (Acts 2:36b): God made Jesus Lord and Christ a. Powerful, unambiguous terms in Judaism b. Lord (Greek kurios): term used to describe Caesar, LXX substitute for YHWH; demonstration of great authority c. Christ (Greek Christos): literally "Anointed One," "Messiah" in Hebrew: the expected King of Israel whom God would send to defeat the enemy of God's people once and for all d. The final detail left to the end for extra emphasis and rhetorical power: God made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified e. They had killed their King! They had rejected God's Chosen King! 3. Audience Response (Acts 2:37): Cut to the heart (with grief, fear, and mourning), a desire to know what to do 4. Peter's response (Acts 2:38-39): Repent, be baptized, receive gift of the Holy Spirit a. Subjection to Jesus as Lord demands repentance, metanoeo, to change one's heart and mind for the better, to seek after Him and His ways (cf. Romans 8:29, 1 John 2:3-6) b. Immersion in water in the name of Jesus is necessary to obtain remission of sin; "unto remission of sin" the same phrase as in Matthew 26:28, the reason for the pouring out of [Jesus'] blood of the covenant (cf. Hebrews 9:15-27) c. That having been done, they can participate in this fulfilled promise, having received the gift of the Holy Spirit, which is for all who heed God's call in Christ D. Summary of Continued Message (Acts 2:40): Save yourselves from this crooked generation! 1. At this juncture Luke no longer records the exact message of Peter but provides an overview of what he said 2. Peter "testified" and "exhorted" them to save themselves from their crooked generation 3. Thus, no longer continue with these Jews who put their trust in the Temple in Jerusalem, their Abrahamic descent, and expect God to grant them victory over the Roman pagan overlord E. Result: 3,000 souls baptized, establishment of the church in Jerusalem (Acts 2:42-47) IV. Analysis and Conclusion A. Thus we see the first Gospel lesson in all its fullness: the life, death, resurrection, lordship, and continued work of Jesus B. Peter is quite aware of his audience and how to communicate the Gospel to them 1. They may come from around the known world, but they are all Jewish, and therefore share faith in the One True God and the hope of renewal and restoration through the promised Messiah 2. They are also aware of Jesus of Nazareth and the things which He accomplished 3. Peter therefore reminds them of who He is and what happened to Him in order to bear witness to His resurrection 4. He provides two sets of witness: the eyewitness testimony of himself and the eleven along with the prophetic testimony of David in the Psalms, which would immediately be known to the Jews listening to him, and its application to the Messiah would be an understandable and acceptable interpretation 5. The conclusion is inescapable: God made Jesus both Lord and Christ, the One whom they had crucified! C. Lack of discussion of atonement mechanism 1. Peter's lesson itself does not elaborate upon the atonement mechanism inherent in Jesus' death 2. There is no mention of "Jesus died for you"; in no way is the lesson audience-centered 3. Peter's appeal is not based in his audience's self-interest as much as the sovereignty of God: the powerful statement he makes is that Jesus is Lord and Christ based on His resurrection 4. The Jews on the day of Pentecost completely understand what that means: if God has exalted Jesus as Lord and Christ, they must listen to Jesus and serve Him! 5. None of this is a denial of Jesus' death as atoning for sin; it simply shows that the Gospel can be preached with an emphasis on Jesus' lordship and authority D. Association with Context 1. Peter does well at associating the outpouring of the Spirit which the Jews are seeing with the events surrounding Jesus' life, death, resurrection, and lordship 2. The Jews knew of Joel 2:28-32 and looked forward to its fulfillment in the time of the Messiah 3. Peter identifies the day of Pentecost in 30 (or 33) CE as that day, the outpouring of the Spirit, the momentous events surrounding the change in covenant/Kingdom, and salvation through the name of the Lord 4. Jesus is that Lord; the momentous events were His death, resurrection, ascension, and lordship; the Spirit is outpoured as a result 5. The blessing was not to be unique to the Apostles: all who repented and were baptized would receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (even if the ability to speak in tongues and prophesying would require the hands of the Apostles, Acts 8:15-18) 6. God acts in Jesus and through Jesus in His life, death, resurrection, and now in His lordship, and invites everyone to participate in that promise 7. The symbolism of the events were likely not lost on the audience! a. Languages were confused as a result of man's presumptuous attitude and activity at Babel; through the Spirit of Christ all can hear the mighty works of God in their own language (cf. Genesis 11:1-9) b. As Pentecost was designed to celebrate the firstfruits of the harvest, so Christ is the firstfruits from the dead, and so celebrated (Numbers 28:26, 1 Corinthians 15:20) c. As Pentecost was also traditionally understood as when God gave the Law to Israel at Sinai, the treatise of the old covenant, so Peter now preaches the Gospel of the Kingdom of Christ on Pentecost, the treatise of the new covenant (Exodus 19:1, 20:1-20, Hebrews 7:12-9:27) E. Thus we see how Peter powerfully preached the Gospel to his fellow Jews and how they responded in great numbers to the message F. What Peter preached on the day of Pentecost so long ago remains true to this day: God has made Jesus both Lord and Christ, having exalted Him in His resurrection and ascension, and therefore everyone must seek after Him and serve Him! F. Honor and follow Christ as Lord today! G. Invitation/songbook