Acts 2:14-47 “A Spirit Filled Sermon”

January 25, 2009
First Church of the Brethren
H. Kevin Derr Acts 2:14-47
“A Spirit Filled Sermon”

14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15 These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17 ” ‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. 18 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. 19 I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. 20 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. 21 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ 22 “People of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 25 David said about him: ” ‘I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. 26 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest in hope, 27 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, you will not let your holy one see decay. 28 You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.’ 29 “Brothers and sisters, we all know that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Seeing what was to come, he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did his body see decay. 32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, ” ‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand 35 until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” 36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” 37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 Peter replied, “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 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” 40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. The Fellowship of the Believers 42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

I. People respond to God in a number of ways, some will embrace and engage God, others will find ways to make it seem that they have not encountered God at all. We all do this at one point or another. There are devout believers who for some reason or a other cannot presently make the leap of faith necessary, so they will find a way to explain what has happened in a fashion that preserves their understanding of the world. These traits are not a division between believers and non-believers, but rather they are the realities of believers lives.

a. Peter stood up to address a crowd of devout Jewish men, some scoffed at what they heard and suggested that the disciples were drunk, which enabled them to speak in other languages. A more tenous position to hold. Others wanted to know what it means, Peter addresses both groups.

b. He says, 14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and    addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15 These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning!

i. Peter says, these men are not drunk, it is only 9:00 AM

ii. Something else is happening here, God has unleashed his spirit.

iii. So, here is what is taking place: 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17 ” ‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. 18 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.

1. The prophet Joel (2:28-32) says God will pour out his Spirit on all people, not on just a select few.

a. Your sons and daughters will prophesy,

i. A prophet is not fundamentally someone who fortells the future, but rather someone who speaks God’s message to his people

ii. At times that does involve what will happen, but the core of the prophets messages is always about the moral failures of God’s people, and a call to repentance and a turning to God.

b. Your young men will see visions and old men will dream dreams

i. This is not say that young men will have a plan for the future, a vision about what they want to do, or that old men will day dream about the past, glory days of old

ii. No, this is about God speaking to his people, in some very specific forms, dream and visions, the way that God communicated with Joseph and with Mary.

2. When a specific time has come, God will pour out his Spirit on both men and women, and they will prophecy. Peter says, this day has come! c. In some ways this is almost a bitter sweet announcement, because with the hope that comes with the announcement of the outpouring of the Spirit, there also comes the warnings. Joel continues: 19 I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. 20 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. 21 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

i. There will be signs in the heavens and signs on the earth

1. On the earth blood, fire and billows of smoke a. Classic signs of war, blood, fire and smoke b. Wars and the roomers of war

2. In the heavens a. The sun will be turned to darkness, sounds like a solar eclipse b. The moon to blood may well be a hunter’s moon, a full moon in the fall that allows hunters to be out gathering game before the winter.

3. Joel’s intent was not to be cryptic, Peter didn’t want to obscure the message, and rather he used phrases people would understand. ii. In the future there will be events that herald the coming of the spirit, Peter says this day is here. The result is that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

iii. So, Peter begins to tell them about the Lord.

II. Who is the Lord, Jesus of Nazareth. 22 “People of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. a. Peter begins to preach what becomes known as the Kyrigma, the message, the core of the early church’s preaching about Jesus.

i. Jesus of Nazareth, they identify a specific person, not any Jesus but Jesus from the town of Nazareth.

ii. God accredited this man to you, God was his reference, how did God accredit Jesus of Nazareth to the people of Israel?

1. by miracles, wonders and sings which God did through him, as you can bear witness to

2. In other words, there is no dispute that Jesus worked miracles

iii. You handed Jesus of Nazareth over to sinful men, this was God’s plan and intent.

1. While you are responsible for your actions

2. This was none the less God’s plan

iv. And according to God’s plan, you killed him by nailing him to the cross.

1. Peter places the blame on the shoulders of those present, and yet keeps this in tension with God’s plan.

2. Peter does not say, if you had only listened to Jesus, and not killed him he would be on the throne today….

3. No, he said this is God’s plan.

v. Again, God takes action, and raises Jesus to life, death was unable to keep Jesus. Jesus was freed from the agony of death by the Father, this is again in accordance with God’s wishes.

b. So, what does all this mean? Peter continues to display the truth for us: 25 David said about him: “‘I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. 26 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest in hope, 27 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, you will not let your holy one see decay. 28 You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.’

i. Peter quotes a psalm of David, Psalm 16:8-11 from the Septuagint. That Luke uses the quote from the LXX suggests he knew Greek and not Hebrew.

ii. This Psalm is about Jesus, as if Jesus is speaking, a prophetic utterance from the Psalms. How can I say this, simply, you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, you will not let your holy one see decay.

iii. It is precisely in this light that Peter understands this Psalm, he says, 29 “Brothers and sisters, we all know that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Seeing what was to come, he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did his body see decay. 32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.

1. There is no way that David can be speaking of himself, he is in the grave, at the time of Peter the grave was commonly known.

2. That was not a question.

3. God made David a promise that one of his line would sit on the throne, and so the promise must speak of another.

4. He was speaking of the Messiah, of Jesus who God raised to life

5. Now, the day has come when the Holy Spirit is being poured out, just as God has promised.

a. They understand several of God’s promises coming to be seen in Jesus and now in the out poring of the Holy Spirit.

b. This is a significant day. c. Just in case there were still any questions, Peter takes this a step further, and builds his case from scripture again. This time from Psalm 110:1. Peter preaches,

i. 34 For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, ” ‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand 35 until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” 36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”

ii. David is still in his tomb, this is the witness of the community.

1. So, David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he wrote

2. The Lord, God the Father, said to my Lord, Jesus of Nazareth, Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool

a. The Father says to the Son, seated on his right, I will accomplish this. b. And there is no way that this can be about David

i. It is about Jesus

ii. Another would have to have spoken these words about David, for it to be about David.

iii. So, who would David’s Lord be, someone greater than himself and yet not the Father?

1. Could this be about Moses? He is not seated at the right hand of the Father

2. It could not be about Saul, he was disobedient to God

3. Jesus of Nazareth is the only one that makes sense.

III. Those who heard Peter’s preaching were moved, moved to action, but they didn’t know what to do. Luke tells us, 37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

a. There is only one proper response, repentance, and in the case of those outside the community, baptism as well. That is the answer to what shall we do. Anytime we encounter God our first response will be repentance, not euphoric feelings, but a realization of our own distance from God, we too will be cut to the heart. Luke recounts the experience for us in the following: 38 Peter replied, “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 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” 40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

b. Repent and be baptized

i. Repent, turn from the sin you know, and follow Jesus

ii. If you have never made a formal commitment to follow Jesus, the next step is to be baptized, and state that I now am a follower of Jesus.

iii. If we repent, and be baptized in the name of Jesus for the forgiveness of our sins, we are then able to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

iv. And Peter continued to encourage them, plead with tem, to be saved from the corrupt generation.

v. That day, three thousand were added to the church.

c. So, what are we to do next? 42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

i. Devotion to the apostles teaching

ii. Devotion to fellowship

iii. Devotion to the break of bread, communion,

iv. Devotion to prayer

v. The results are awesome:

1. Many signs and wonders were preformed by the apostles

2. All believers were together and held all things in common

a. They sold property as there was need

b. Daily the meet together in the temple for worship and prayer

c. They spent time together, in each others homes with glad and sincere hearts

3. Daily God added to their number those who were being saved

“Fourth Sunday of Advent” Matthew 1:18-25

December 23, 2007

First Church of the Brethren

H. Kevin Derr

Matthew 1:18-25

“A Son”

 

Matthew 1:18-25 ¹⁸ This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. ²⁰ But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, {21 Jesus is the Greek form of Joshua, which means the LORD saves.} because he will save his people from their sins.” ²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³ “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” {23 Isaiah 7:14} –which means, “God with us.” ²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. ²⁵ But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

 

This is s a text that you have heard on numerous occasions, it may be that a few of you were actually reciting this in your head as I was reading. So, what is there that I can tell you about this passage that you have not heard a few dozen times before? Probably little! But, then this is not about giving you information, this is not primarily an educational endeavor.

Then what is it that we are doing here this morning? We are here to draw closer to the living God, to drink deeply from the spring of Living Water, we are here to listen to the Spirit speaking to us. It may not be as dramatic as what Mary or Joseph had with their angelic visitors in their dreams, but the goal is the same. We are hear to listen for what God has to say to us today. We are here to listen to what God wants to communicate to the world through you and me. The question is not, will God speak to us today, the question is are we willing to hear what God has to say to us today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prayer:

 

 

I. Mathew begins his story of Jesus rather plainly, in a straightforward and upfront fashion. There is little need to read between the lines.

a. He states, ¹⁸ This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about:

i. Here is the point, he wants to make Jesus known to his readers, to the world. He is not about concealing Jesus, he does not encode secrets only for the initiate to receive, rather he puts the information there where anyone can understand what he is saying.

1. In Jesus’ day Mystery religions were very popular, you got the secret once you were in, had been initiated. And as you progressed more secrets were reveled to you.

2. There are no secrets here, the point is to make the story of Jesus known, to make it public.

ii. Again there is no secret here, Mary is pregnant before she and Joseph are married, a scandal, not a badge of honor. This was a stoneable offence. But, Matthew tells us, : His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.

1. Mary is pregnant, with child, before they were married or intimate with each other.

2. Now we are told this came about through the Holy Spirit.

b. Now as the story progresses we age given a window into Joseph’s mind. Matthew writes, . ¹⁹ Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

i. Joseph was not a vengeful sort, though by rights he could demand that Mary be stoned, he wants to divorce her quietly, not to shame her and her family. He is exercising mercy, forgiveness and being very generous.

ii. Additionally, he is giving the man, he still does not know that is happening is done by the Holy Spirit, who is the father the right to claim the child and Mary. He is not going to steal another man’s child. He is righteous.

c. Now, he was a man who was serious about his faith, he intended to do not what he was entitled to but what was right. He wanted to do what God wanted in such a situation. Matthew continues to tell us about Joseph, . ²⁰ But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, {21 Jesus is the Greek form of Joshua, which means the LORD saves.} because he will save his people from their sins.”

i. Joseph made up his mind, he knew what he wanted to do and what he felt was righteous.

ii. Then an angle to tell him what is going on.

1. To be honest, if Mary told him, do you think that he would have believed her?

2. Put yourself in his place, would you believe her?

iii. Joseph son of David, is the title that the angle uses to greet Joseph.

1. Remember David is known as a man after God’s own heart.

2. We have already seen that Joseph is a righteous man, not a legalist, but righteous.

iv. Then the angle paints for him the big picture:

1. Don’t be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, she has not been unfaithful, there is nothing sinful about what has taken place here.

2. The child she carries is from the Holy Spirit

a. This child is a boy

b. He is to be named Jesus or Joshua, because he will save his people from their sins.

i. Notice it is not to save his people from the Romans, from the Greeks, Egyptians or any others

ii. It is to save them from their sins

iii. If you want to understand the problem that Jesus comes to solve it is our sin, our fractured relationship with the Father

1. The truth is that it touches every part of our lives, our world and our universe

2. This is how the problem is stated, it is dealing with this brokenness in us, sin, separation, alienation and all its consequences.

3. To save his people from their sins is what this story is all about.

a. This is where we often miss the beauty of this, we push it into moralistic legalism

i. We become the Pharisees

ii. We become about behavior monitoring

b. But this is about restoring relationship, this is about saving us from that which separates us from God and from each other, this is about sin.

II. Now Matthew gives us another piece of essential information for understanding the Gospel of Matthew, for understanding Jesus and knowing what it means to follow him. He tells us, that Jesus is God.

a. Matthew tells us in this fashion. He states, .” ²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³ “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” {23 Isaiah 7:14} –which means, “God with us.”

i. All of this, Mary being pregnant, Jesus being born to save his people from their sins, so that the what the Lord said, will be fulfilled.

ii. Now what did the Lord say?

1. The virgin will be with child and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel.

2. But, the son was to be named Jesus, but they will say of him, God is with us.

3. How can Jesus be Immanuel, how can having Jesus present be a way of saying, “God with us.”

a. Because, Matthew is reading this passage from Isaiah 7:14 literally.

b. Jesus, literally is God with us.

c. In other words, Jesus is God, the Son of God, but at the same time he is also human, Mary’s son. From this rises the classic Christian understanding of Jesus, he is fully human, fully divine.

i. He is not a divine-human hybrid

ii. He retains full humanity and full divinity, how, I cannot begin to explain, it remains a mystery.

III. The first step we take in maturing in our faith is to learn to listen to God, to discern his voice calling to us, instructing us, leading us, guiding us and urging us to come closer to himself.

a. The second step is rather apparent, but not necessarily easy it is doing what we are instructed to do.

b. Joseph becomes one of our examples, ²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.

i. Joseph did what the Lord had commanded him to do, he took Mary home as his wife.

1. Now what’s the big deal about that

2. For him it caused public disgrace, he was unable to control himself with Mary and he defiled her before they were married.

a. By taking her home as his wife, he claimed the child was his

b. For a man who was worked to be righteous, he is now a man who is looked down upon.

ii. In today’s culture being people of faith is not popular, in fact it may well make life more difficult for you in several ways, especially the younger that you are.

1. doing what is right is not always popular or easy, but it is what is right

2. I suppose Joseph could have told his neighbors about the angelic visitor, but how many do you think would have listened?

c. Now, we are drawing closer to Christmas, but are we drawing closer to Christ Jesus?

IV. The outcome of the advent season should be just that, that we are now in a deeper more meaningful relationship with Christ Jesus and his people. We have the example of Joseph, and of Mary, though we did not speak of her today.

a. Our goals need to be structured around these two elements

i. Listening to God, like Joseph and like Mary

ii. We need to do what we hear from the Lord

b. This is ultimately about living out of a restored relationship with the Lord, and by doing so drawing others to enter into a renewed relationship with the Father.