Acts Pt. 5 | Sermon Notes
Acts Pt. 5
Pastor Chris Pletcher
October 20, 2024
Acts 2:22-47 //
“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;
therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope.
For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption.
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. 32 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, 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.”
37 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.
The Fellowship of the Believers
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.
Acts 2:22-35 // THE MESSAGE
“Attested to you by God”
“Delivered up” (See below: Isaiah 53:10-11)
“Crucified and killed” (See below: 1 Peter 2:24-25)
“Raised up” (See below: Ephesians 1:19-21; 2:4-6)
“Ascended”
“Exalted”
“Poured out”
What is Jesus doing now?
“‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”’
Acts 2:36-41 // THE RESPONSE
They heard
They were “cut to the heart”
They asked… “What shall we do?”
They were told… “Repent and be baptized…”
“Those who RECEIVED his word were baptized” (See below: John 1:11-13)
Acts 2:42-47 // THE FRUIT
The fruit of Pentecost is that 3000 Jews “from every nation under heaven” repented and received Jesus as the Messiah! They were baptized into the body of Christ, and the New Testament church was born. The result of this incredible move of the Holy Spirit was a massive house church movement that would change the religious, spiritual and cultural landscape of a city (and eventually the region and the world).
The divine intersection between Pentecost and the harvest of 3000 souls is absolutely stunning. Pentecost is another name for the “Feast of Weeks”, one of 3 major Jewish feasts that required all able-bodies males to travel to Jerusalem
“The Feast of Weeks was in celebration of the first fruits of the wheat harvest.”
https://www.gotquestions.org/Feast-of-Weeks.html
What do we take away from all of this?
“And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” Acts 2:42
DEVOTION = Time + Attention + Sacrifice
What were they devoted to?
To learning God’s word
To “the fellowship”
To the breaking of bread
To “the prayers”
Scripture References
Isaiah 53:10-11 //
Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief;
when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.
1 Peter 2:24-25 //
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. 25 For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
Ephesians 1:19-21 //
and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.
Ephesians 2:4-6 //
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus
John 1:11-13 //
He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.