Bible Studies for Life By Jeffrey Leonard, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Religion, Samford University
Unstoppable Message
Acts 2:22–24, 32–33, 36–38
The first few chapters of the book of Acts are marked by a veritable whirlwind of change. Perhaps not since the exodus itself had God’s people experienced so much transformation in such a brief span of time.
In the Gospels, Jesus forbids His disciples to go to Samaritan villages (Matt. 10), and the disciples are stunned when, on one occasion, they find Jesus talking with a Samaritan woman (John 4). Yet when we arrive at Acts 9 the disciples follow a new command and begin their own outreach to the Samaritan villages.
In the Gospels, Jesus directs His disciples not to reach out to the Gentiles (Matt. 10), and He warns His followers not to pursue their brand of religiosity (Matt. 5–7). He even instructs His followers to treat those who refuse to confess open sin as “Gentiles,” that is, as those who are outside of the people of God. And yet in Acts 10, Peter leads the Church in embracing the Gentiles, and the Jewish believers rejoice at their inclusion (Acts 15:3).
And speaking of Peter, how many times is he the model of misstep and misunderstanding in the Gospels? And yet when we arrive at the book of Acts he is the clear leader, the bold witness to the resurrection of Jesus who leads the Church confidently through every difficulty.
From the moment the Spirit descends on the disciples at Pentecost, the timid and wayward followers of Jesus are permanently transformed. From here, they venture far beyond their original confines. They speak with a new boldness. And they display a unity and fidelity they had never evinced when they were with Jesus Himself.
Jesus died and rose again to bring salvation. (22–24)
While Pentecost is best known among Christians as the day when the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus’ followers, the term itself is just a Greek rendering of the Jewish festival “Shavuot,” meaning “weeks.” As the festival that celebrated the barley harvest, Shavuot was held each year seven weeks (thus the name) after Passover. Along with Passover and “Sukkot,” or “Feast of Tabernacles,” Shavuot was an annual festival in which Jewish men were expected to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
As the Jewish people became increasingly scattered during the Diaspora, this command could not be followed as it once was. Still, a sizeable number of people from the far-flung reaches of the Roman Empire could be expected to show up in Jerusalem each year. It is this crowd that Peter and the other disciples reach out to as they speak in the languages of Pentecost.
Jesus is exalted as Lord. (32–33, 36)
When the early Christians reach out, it is with the message of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Peter takes the lead as he preaches to the crowd, reminding them of the crime it was to kill the innocent man, Jesus, and urging them to submit themselves to this one person who could save them. Peter implores the crowd to see in the resurrection the Father’s stamp of approval on the mission, message and death of His Son.
The message of Christ calls for a response. (37–38)
The effect of Jesus’ message was immediately evident. As their hearts were cut to the quick by his message, many of Peter’s fellow countrymen responded, “What should we do?”
Peter’s response was both elegant and simple: “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (v. 38). These words lit a fire that continues to burn to this very day among God’s people.
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