Acts 2:14-21

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14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, "Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. 15 For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams. 18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. 19 I will show wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. 20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. 21 And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.'" ~ Acts 2:14-21

Today, we return to our study of Acts 2 where the Lord has just sent the Holy Spirit to indwell His followers in Jerusalem who had gathered at the courts of the Temple. As the sound of the arrival of the Holy Spirit happened it attracted the attention of devout Jews who had come from all over the world to Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost. When the Holy Spirit entered the followers of the Lord they spoke in all of the languages that were represented there that day. In many different languages the followers of the Lord Jesus spoke the same message which highlighted the goodness of God.

In v.14-15 of today's passage we read, "14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, 'Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. 15 For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day.'"

As the followers of the Lord Jesus were being baptized by the Holy Spirit, they spoke in languages they didn't know or understand. Some of those who heard their language being spoken explained it by saying the followers of the Lord Jesus had been drinking too much wine. At that moment Peter stood up and preached his first recorded sermon. He began by reminding the people gathered there at the Temple that the disciples weren't drunk because it was 9:00 in the morning. This underscores the fact that when we truly do not know what something is about, we tend to make it about stupid stuff. For example, we all grew up hearing that the unpardonable sin was suicide. Well, nowhere does the Bible say that suicide is an unforgivable sin. Furthermore, the Bible teaches that all sin, past, present, and future is forgiven through faith in the atoning death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. One’s eternal destiny is sealed and set at the moment of justifying faith. The unforgivable sin is rejecting the free gift of salvation through the cross of Christ.

In v.16-21 of today's passage we read, "16 But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams. 18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. 19 I will show wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. 20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. 21 And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.'"

Peter continued by pointing his hearers to the Old Testament prophet Joel. Peter highlighted the fact that Joel had given the prophecy about 700 years before and that prophecy had come to pass in their midst. It is what Joel predicted. The key to Joel's prophecy is discovered in the phrase, "I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh." In other words God not only gave the Holy Spirit to the Jews but to all peoples everywhere, including Gentiles. 

So Peter pointed his hearers to the time when God would pour out his Spirit upon all flesh. Not only all people everywhere, but all kinds of people, young men, young women, male and female. With emphasis placed upon youth, Peter highlighted the fact that leadership, effectiveness, and power will not be limited to older folks. He accentuated the fact that young men and young women will speak and lead. Even servants, menservants and maidservants, obscure people, insignificant people, upon them God would pour out His Spirit and they would prophesy. 

The Word of God, the Bible is much more than we know it to be. It is the truth throughout. In John 7:37-39 we read, "37 Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, 'If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, from his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water.' 39 But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified." It was the Lord Jesus who had given us His Word. It was He who gave all of the types throughout the Old Testament that still to this day point us to His reality which is the only reality there is.

For example, the feasts He gave to Israel in the Old Testament reveals this. The Lord Jesus was crucified on the Jewish feast of Passover, He was buried on the Feast of Unleavened Bread, He was resurrected on the Feast of First Fruits. Then fifty days after His resurrection, the promised New Covenant arrived on the Feast of Pentecost. The whole Christian message is discovered in the Feasts, because the God of the Bible is true and therefore can be trusted. It is His promise to you and me that "if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."

Acts 2:5-13

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5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. 7 Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, "Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God." 12 So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, "Whatever could this mean?" 13 Others mocking said, "They are full of new wine." ~ Acts 2:5-13

Today, we return to our study of Acts 2 where the Lord has just sent the promised Holy Spirit to indwell His disciples in Jerusalem. All through the Old Testament, the people of God were promised that God’s Spirit would be given in a powerful and unique way. Throughout Israel's history God them certain feasts which provided pictures of the work of the Lord Jesus and also the sending of His Holy Spirit. In Leviticus 23 we find a full listing of these feasts pointing us to the coming Messiah and the sending of His Spirit to indwell each believer.

The first was Passover which was in the Spring on the 14th day of Nisan. The Passover was a picture of the death of the Lord Jesus. In His death on the cross, He was the perfect Passover lamb, the one true sacrifice for the sin of the whole world.  This is why in 1 Corinthians 5:7 we read, "Christ, our Passover."  The second feast in Leviticus 23 was the feast of First fruits. This was the celebration symbolizing the full harvest to come. This is a picture of Christ’s resurrection, which came immediately after his death. This is why Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:20, "Christ is the first fruits of those who sleep." Fifty days later came the third feast, the Feast of Harvest which is also known as Pentecost. It was on the day of Pentecost that the Lord sent His promised Holy Spirit who is the guarantee of the believer's eternal inheritance of salvation. 

In v.5-11 of today's passage we read, "5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. 7 Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, 'Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.'"

Luke describes for us the onlookers to the coming of the Holy Spirit into these early followers of the Lord Jesus. It was intended for this certain group of people, these who were in Jerusalem at that time for the Feast of Pentecost. These men were full of devotion to God and they were from every nation. They were Jews who had been dispersed from the land of Israel and had gone out to other nations of the earth. Many of them made an annual pilgrimage back to Jerusalem to worship the God of the Bible there.

When these men heard the sound of the coming of the Holy Spirit they took notice. This mighty sound arrested their attention, causing them to rush together into the temple courts. When they arrived, they noticed these uneducated people from Galilee speaking in over sixteen different languages. It is important that Luke named the different languages that were being spoken. He first listed a group of dialects east of Jerusalem: Parthians, Medes, Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia representing the people from the east. Then he highlighted those from the north, including Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, which were all Roman provinces of Asia Minor. Then he moved south to Egypt and parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, in northern Africa. Then west, Rome and Cretans, then again south, Arabians. Men from all of these parts heard the great things about God in their language. It was a phenomenon that arrested the attention of this great multitude as they came pressing into the temple courts.

In v.12-13 of today's passage we read, "12 So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, 'Whatever could this mean?' 13 Others mocking said, 'They are full of new wine.'"

As a result of this miracle the people were amazed and perplexed. The word "amazed" in Greek is a word that means literally, "their minds were blown." In addition, they were perplexed which means their attention was "captured." All of this caused some in the crowd to assume the disciples were drunk on wine. But this, as we know, wasn't the case. The coming of the Holy Spirit happened the way it did so as to get the attention of the Jews that something supernatural was happening. Following this miracle, Peter preached his first sermon and many that day believed the gospel. This is always the apostolic pattern in the book of Acts.

The preaching of the gospel by the apostles throughout the book of Acts was always attended by signs, wonders, and mighty deeds. God did this in order to authenticate the gospel in the eyes of the Jews. God in human flesh came into the world. He performed miracles proving Himself to be God. He died on the cross in order to bear the punishment for our sin. Then He rose from the dead. All of this partly because as we are told by the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 1 the Jews demanded signs and miracles. This is why on the day of Pentecost these miraculous things happened. The Jews always demanded supernatural proof for everything. However, after the Lord Jesus provided many miracles the Jews by and large did not believe in Him as God's promised Messiah. In fact, they conveniently discovered many ridiculous ways to explain those miracles away. 

Faith is an act of our will and most of the Jews of first century Israel didn't submit to God's gift of faith to them. It is in the arena of our faith where our eternity is determined. God did not make us robots who have no heart. Through the Holy Spirit and the Bible, God attracts our hearts to Him. Although our faith is a gift from Him, we decide whether to give it safe haven in our souls. It just goes to prove that miracles and signs do not change our hearts to the point of faith in the Lord Jesus. Signs and miracles arrest our attention. It is not until the impact of the truth filters down to our hearts that we truly turn to God. This is why the Lord Jesus said to Nicodemus that we must be born again because when we were born we were born dead to God. We were unable to have a relationship with Him until the Lord Jesus came to remove the effects of our sin. It is one thing to believe with our intellect, but, it is another to believe with our heart.

Acts 2:1-4

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1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. ~ Acts 2:1-4

Today, we transition into our study of Acts 2 where the promise the Lord Jesus had made to the disciples about the coming of the Holy Spirit is about to be fulfilled. It is the faithfulness of God that is the fuel to our faith in Him. If He were not true to His promises, we would doubt His goodness and choose to be defined by another. Believers in the Lord Jesus Christ have made the decision to believe God's promises to the point of risking our eternity upon them. 

In v.1 of today's passage we read, "When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place."

It was the day of Pentecost which means "fifty," as in fifty days after the Passover feast. Pentecost came at the end of the wheat harvest in Israel, and the Jews were instructed by God to take the newly harvested wheat and make of it two loaves of bread. These loaves were symbols of Jew and Gentile. It was the Lord Jesus who said He came first to the Jews. Then according to John 10:16 He said, "And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd." The other sheep the Lord Jesus referenced are the Gentiles. So, on the day of Pentecost, God took the Jews and the Gentiles and brought them together and made them one.

In addition, these loaves were to be baked with leaven. Leaven is yeast and is an object lesson of sin in the Bible. The wave loaves are the only sacrifice in all the Old Testament that ever had leaven included in them. It was God's way of telling us that His people are not perfect people. Believers in the Lord Jesus are people who have been forgiven yet we are still sinful. Thus the loaves were baked with leaven. Luke tells us that 120 people were gathered together into that one place at the Temple. Once they were baptized by the Spirit, they were baptized into one body of believers known as the Church. 

In v.2 of today's passage we read, "And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting."

The wind in Scripture often is used by the Lord as symbolic of the Holy Spirit. The wind is often used in the Bible to point us to the symbolic nature of God's invisible power. To Nicodemus the Lord Jesus said you must be born of the Spirit to enter heaven. He likened being born again or being made alive to God to the wind which blows wherever it desires and no man can tell where it comes from or where it will go. The Holy Spirit is like the wind, He is invisible, we cannot see Him. Life in the Spirit for the born again believer is the experience of God's resurrection power that needs not any props of any kind. The result is transformational change from within.

The word translated "wind" is an interesting word used only one other place in the New Testament. It was a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind. It literally means the sound of a blast of breath. There was no movement in the air, just the rushing sound or noise of a mighty wind. It was a great sound out of heaven as if the very blast of God’s breath had reached the earth. The Holy Spirit is the breath of God. This mighty blast of breath who came from God has made us alive to God and His culture. The Holy Spirit of God came to earth on the day of Pentecost in order to fill the hearts of believers with the very presence of God.

In v.3-4 of today's passage we read, "3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance."

Fire purifies by burning off dross, garbage and waste. The Lord Jesus used fire symbolizing how believers will experience the purifying passion of the Holy Spirit within. The Holy Spirit creates within each believer in the Lord Jesus a strange hunger for the Lord who produces a desire to be defined by Him. Once we begin to be defined by God's Word, the Spirit of God burns away that which is inconsistent with God's definition of things.

The "other tongues" mentioned here were known languages which were understood by those who heard the disciples speak. The disciples could not understand the languages that they spoke that day in Jerusalem. These were intelligent utterances praising God and the people gathered around that day heard the believers testifying about the mighty works of God. This is the purpose of the filling of the Spirit in the believer, that we might speak with boldness about the mighty works of God.

Interestingly, the Greek word translated "tongues" is recorded 50 times in the original Greek of the New Testament. The number 50 symbolizes deliverance from a burden. In Leviticus 25, God commanded Israel that on every fiftieth year, on the Day of Atonement, that a Jubilee was to be declared with the sound of a trumpet. During the Jubilee year, all debts were settled in favor of the debtor and inheritances were returned to their rightful owners. Also, those who worked as slave laborers in order to repay a debt were granted their freedom to return home to their families and their land. This is what the Holy Spirit's application of the Gospel to you and me has done. Through the application of the Gospel to you and me, God has freed us to return home to Him to enjoy what we could never have enjoyed before the sacrifice of His Son on the cross of Calvary.

Acts 1:21-26

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21 "Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection." 23 And they proposed two: Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. 24 And they prayed and said, "You, O Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which of these two You have chosen 25 to take part in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place." 26 And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven apostles. ~ Acts 1:21-26

Today, we conclude our study of Acts 1 where the Lord has raised up the Apostle Peter to lead those who had become followers of the Lord Jesus. Peter stood before them as a man of strength because he had come to the end of himself. He had come to the place where he understood that when we are weak God is strong. This is the message of the gospel. The Good News means we can stop lying to ourselves. The Good News means God's amazing grace is saving us to a life full of the truth.

In v.21-22 of today's passage we read, "21 Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection."

Again, Peter was speaking to about 120 followers of the Lord Jesus at the courts of the Temple in Jerusalem. His goal was to get the group to vote on the person who would replace Judas as an Apostle. In the verses preceding today's passage Peter said, "The Scriptures must be fulfilled." With the departure of the Lord Jesus Bible study among the eleven disciples took a serious turn for the better. As they studied the Scriptures they realized there must be 12 apostles due to the fact that in the Old Testament they were told in Psalm 109:8 that "someone else will take his (Judas') place." This is what motivated Peter to do what he did in today's passage.

Peter highlighted only two qualifications for the one who would be the twelfth apostle: He had to be one who was there from the very beginning, from the baptism of John, and he had to have accompanied the Lord Jesus all through his ministry. There were many more than twelve disciples who followed the Lord Jesus. He chose twelve of them to be in a special relationship with Him, but there were others also who accompanied Him. Out of that larger band there must be one chosen who had been there the whole time and saw everything the Lord did. Also, this man had to have witnessed the Lord's appearances after the resurrection. He had to give witness to the authenticity of the resurrection.

In v.23-26 of today's passage we read, "23 And they proposed two: Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. 24 And they prayed and said, 'You, O Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which of these two You have chosen 25 to take part in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.' 26 And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven apostles."

Now, the choosing of this man took place in an interesting way. The only two men who had been there the whole time and had also seen the Lord Jesus after His resurrection were considered. The others had to decide between the two of them, and they did it in the Old Testament way: They cast lots for them. It was very much like flipping a coin. They may have literally used a coin, and flipped for heads or tails. It came up heads, and Matthias won. They called it casting lots, though we might call it flipping a coin. Their actions that day reveals to us that they believed God is involved even in the smallest things. 

The Lord Jesus made a promise in Matthew 19. He said, "When the son of man comes in glory, you who have followed me will sit on 12 thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel." Peter undoubtedly remembered the Lord Jesus saying those words, so, he saw the need to replace Judas with Matthias. Here were two men equally qualified, so the group chose them by the casting of lots. The lot fell on Matthias and he became the twelfth apostle. By the way, Matthias means "gift of Yahweh." This process gives us an example of how the Spirit of God operates among us. The key for us is that we trust the Lord to reveal to us His will which will always be consistent with the teachings in His Word. Interestingly, Matthias is not mentioned again in the Bible beyond today's passage.

Everyone wants to know the will of God for their lives. God reveals His will to us through His Word and the leading of His Spirit. He has been known to reveal His will to us through circumstances, as well. To be sure, God’s will for everyone is that we obey His Word. This was His will from the beginning that we be defined by Him. And, we know that we are being defined by God when we obey Him. 

Throughout the Scriptures the Lord tells us what to do and what not to do. He tells us how to live. As we respond to the light He gives us we can expect Him to give us more light. Having said that though, there will always be a measure of uncertainty in it all. Uncertainty creates space for our faith to be developed. If we are ignorant of God’s Word, we will always be ignorant of God’s will. I really like what Jim Elliot once said, "God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with him."

Acts 1:15-20

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15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples (altogether the number of names was about a hundred and twenty), and said, 16 "Men and brethren, this Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus; 17 for he was numbered with us and obtained a part in this ministry." 18 (Now this man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out. 19 And it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem; so that field is called in their own language, Akel Dama, that is, Field of Blood.) 20 "For it is written in the Book of Psalms: 'Let his dwelling place be desolate. And let no one live in it'; and, 'Let another take his office.'" ~ Acts 1:15-20

Today, we return to our study of the book of Acts where the setting is Jerusalem where 120 followers of the Lord Jesus have gathered in the courts of the Temple. The Lord Jesus has ascended into heaven and He is about to send His Holy Spirit to indwell those who have believed on Him as their Savior. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is uniquely Christian. No Old Testament believer had such a relationship with the Holy Spirit. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is the Lord’s promise to the New Testament believer. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is essential to the believer's salvation. In Romans 8:9 we read, "Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him."

In v.15-17 of today's passage we read, "15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples (altogether the number of names was about a hundred and twenty), and said, 16 'Men and brethren, this Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus; 17 for he was numbered with us and obtained a part in this ministry.'"

Peter, along with 120 other believers gathered in Jerusalem at the Temple courts in order to replace Judas who had betrayed the Lord. Peter of all people led this meeting. This was the guy who had denied he knew the Lord. And, the third time he denied knowing Him, he used language that was not befitting for the believer. Of course, Peter employed such language in order to save himself from being identified as a follower of the Lord Jesus. How miserable it must have been for Peter when he heard the predicted crow of the rooster in that early morning.

Even though Peter was different than Judas, he was not that much different. The difference was made by their individual responses to failure. Due to the fact that Peter's pain drove him to the Lord Jesus, he was granted a meeting with the Lord Jesus where at the Sea of Galilee the Lord restored him. It was there that Peter was bolstered to be the man he was that particular day in Jerusalem. In order for him to know the strength of the Lord, he had to be made aware of his weakness. It is out of this posture of great weakness that we serve the Lord best. Underscored here is the utter importance of being defined by God. When He defines us, we can do anything as long as it is within the boundaries of His definition for us.

Also underscored here is the fact that the God of the Bible is the God of small beginnings and He reminds us to not despise the days of small beginnings. He doesn't look upon the insignificant and automatically conclude it is insignificant. It was the Lord Jesus who used the small meal of the insignificant little boy to feed so many. We are wise when we faithfully present what little we have to Him. While you and I have no power to multiply what little we have to offer the Lord, He has the power to make of it something big if He so desires! The point is: our lives have meaning and purpose as we learn to live according to His definitions of things.

In this seemingly insignificant context, Peter stood up and addressed those gathered. He highlighted the fact that in the Old Testament passage of Psalm 41:9 that a close friend would betray the Lord Jesus. Of course, this happened when Judas went to the religious leaders of first century Israel and agreed to betray the Lord for 30 pieces of silver. Had he out of his brokenness turned to the Lord as Peter did, his story would have had a different outcome. Judas was entirely responsible for the decision he made to betray the Lord and to not embrace the Lord through his brokenness. His betrayal of the Lord was a deliberate act on his behalf. It wasn’t done in a sudden burst of anger or a fit of uncontrolled rage. Judas sought out the religious leaders of Israel and offered to betray Him. 

The story of Judas is one of the most tragic in the Bible. He had seen the Lord Jesus perform miracles and he heard all of His teaching. And yet it seems, in his heart, he had never become a believer. Like the other disciples, Judas participated in ministry but that didn't mean he was included in the family of God. It was when Judas realized that the Lord Jesus didn't fit his description of what the Messiah should be that he invited greed into his heart. Sadly, though Judas was one of the original twelve, he chose to betray the Lord. He literally kissed the door to heaven and missed eternity with God.

In v.18-19 of today's passage we read, "18 (Now this man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out. 19 And it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem; so that field is called in their own language, Akel Dama, that is, Field of Blood.)"

God didn’t make Judas choose as he did. Sadly, with him even knowing it, Judas was defined and controlled by Satan himself.  Amazingly, God allowed Judas into the redemptive story of mankind. Judas wasn’t made to betray Christ. No, he chose money over the Lord. This, by the way, has long been the tactic of Satan. In Ezekiel 28:16 we read, "Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned." Satan has long been known to trip others up through his abilities in trade and commerce. He even tried to trip up the Lord Jesus by offering Him the economies of this world.

In v.20 of today's passage we read, "For it is written in the Book of Psalms: 'Let his dwelling place be desolate. And let no one live in it'; and, 'Let another take his office.'"

In his speech that day, Peter referenced two Old Testament passages to explain the death of Judas. He referenced Psalm 69 and Psalm 109. This is important because Peter was learning the utter necessity that he and all with him be defined by the God of the Bible. The Apostle Peter knew the Lord Jesus as the Word. The Apostle John would later write, "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God." 

The Lord Jesus is "the Word" who is "the Creator." It was through His words that He defined all things in the beginning. It is words that make sense of things. It is words that bring reason to things. Since the Lord Jesus is the Definer of all things, when we embrace anything that is not consistent with His definition of it, well, we find ourselves in opposition with Him. We are either being defined by the world or we are being defined by the Word. The world is all about the self and what it desires. And, those who are actively being defined by the flesh oppose the Lord. The Lord is the Word which is the Greek word from which we get our English word "logic." To be logical is to be reasonable and the Lord Jesus is our reason for everything.

Acts 1:12-14

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12 Then they went back to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. (This mountain is about half a mile from Jerusalem.) 13 When they entered the city, they went to the upstairs room where they were staying. Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, Simon (known as the Zealot), and Judas son of James were there. 14 They all continued praying together with some women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, and Jesus’ brothers. ~ Acts 1:12-14

Today, we continue our study of Acts 1 where the Lord Jesus has met with His disciples for the final time before He returned to His Father in heaven. The Lord Jesus had taught His disciples the message of the Gospel and He had revealed Himself to them in His glorified post-resurrection body in order that they might be confident that He was enabling them to live and to teach the life of faith He had called them to. And now, He has ascended to His Father so that the promised Holy Spirit would come and empower them to walk with Him.

In v.12 of today's passage we read, "Then they went back to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. (This mountain is about half a mile from Jerusalem.)"

After meeting with the Lord this final time the disciples returned to Jerusalem. Earlier the Lord Jesus had told them to stay and wait in Jerusalem for the promise of the Father, the promised Holy Spirit. The Lord Jesus had also made it clear that when the Holy Spirit came His disciples would have the power to fulfill His call on their lives. So, the disciples stayed in Jerusalem for the power that would fuel their mission. They had to wait and by waiting they displayed their submission to the will of the Lord. 

Waiting is hard to do especially when we have been granted such a life-changing true story. The word "wait" is used some 135 times in the Bible. One of the Hebrew words for waiting combines tension with a sense of anticipation or looking ahead. The word’s origins are connected to the twisting or stretching of a cord giving the idea that tension is part of what it means to grow in the Lord. We do not naturally enjoy this tension. The discomfort makes it seem like something is wrong. We waste a lot of waiting because we resist the sense of powerlessness that comes with it. When we give up on the power of the self life, it is then that we gain the wisdom of God. The ultimate issue herein is that we are granting control to Him instead of keeping it ourselves. And so, the disciples waited on the arrival of the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem. 

In v.13 of today's passage we read, "When they entered the city, they went to the upstairs room where they were staying. Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, Simon (known as the Zealot), and Judas son of James were there."

When the disciples arrived in Jerusalem, they went to the upper room where they resided for the time being. It was common for the houses in Jerusalem to have these upper rooms. Often these rooms were useful for prayer. This room was a big "upper room" to be able to fit so many people there. They obviously went to this room to pray and to wait on the arrival of the Holy Spirit. But, God didn't send the Holy Spirit to them while they were in the upper room praying.  

Patience is so important in our walk with the Lord. Max Lucado once said, "Impatience is selfishness with time." Although most consider patience to be a passive waiting or a gentle tolerance, the Bible paints a different picture. Patience is being selfless with our time. The idea of "patience" in the Bible includes the idea of "endurance." We run the race patiently by persevering through the trials that show up in our lives from day to day. These trials are key at slowing us down and focusing us upon the Lord. In the Bible, patience involves perseverance, enduring trials, and expectantly waiting for God's promise to be fulfilled. The development of our understanding of God’s power and His goodness are crucial to the development of our patience.

In v.14 of today's passage we read, "They all continued praying together with some women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, and Jesus’ brothers."

This is the last mention of Mary, the mother of the Lord Jesus, in the Bible. After this, she is not mentioned. The early church didn't venerate her as others. Even the Lord Jesus didn't give any undue adulation to Mary as the mother of God. Mary is never exalted in the Scriptures. In fact, she is only exalted in reference to the child who was born to her, not of her. You will remember that on one occasion in Mark 3, the Lord Jesus was teaching in a house. His brothers and mother came, and they sent somebody in to tell Him that they wanted to talk to Him. To that the Lord Jesus replied, "Who is My mother? Who are My brothers and sisters?" And then He pointed to the audience and He said, "Whoever does the will of my Father, the same are my family." You see, the Lord Jesus minimized the spiritual significance of Mary and His biological family. Underscored in His response was the fact that His family had to be redeemed just like everyone else. There is no theology about the mother of the Lord in the Scriptures. Paul never mentions her in any of his doctrines of redemption. 

It is no small thing that the brothers of the Lord Jesus are mentioned here in today's passage. In Mark 6 four of His brothers are mentioned. This means after the Lord Jesus was born, Joseph and Mary had children. At least four other boys and some sisters. That smacks in the face of the idea that Mary was a perpetual virgin. In John 7:5 we learn, "His brothers and sisters did not believe in Him." This changed when the Lord Jesus appeared to His brother James after His resurrection. After seeing His brother who was crucified alive, James very likely became the catalyst for the rest of the family to believe in the Lord Jesus as the Messiah. 

So, they all gathered together in this upper room with the disciples and Mary and some other women to pray. We mustn't misunderstand this: the coming of the Holy Spirit did not depend on their prayers. They didn’t have to ask for Him to come. The Holy Spirit was "the promise of the Father" according to the Lord Jesus. These followers of the Lord Jesus were praying, because for the first time, they were physically removed from Him, and the only communication they had with Him was through their prayers which was a new thing. And, when the Holy Spirit came in Acts 2:2, they weren’t praying at all, they were just sitting around. The cultural posture of prayer was to stand or to kneel but they were just sitting. Their prayers had nothing to do with whether or not the Holy Spirit came. It had everything to do with their ability to wait. Waiting on God is a big theme in the Bible. Especially when we have come to the end of our will and we are postured to appreciate His.

Acts 1:9-11

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9 After he said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud hid him from their sight. 10 As he was going, they were looking into the sky. Suddenly, two men wearing white clothes stood beside them. 11 They said, "Men of Galilee, why are you standing here looking into the sky? Jesus, whom you saw taken up from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you saw him go." ~ Acts 1:9-11

Today, we return to our study of Acts 1 where the plan of God for the gospel of Jesus Christ to spread throughout the known world through the yielded lives of believers is becoming more evident to the disciples. In today's passage the Lord Jesus has been meeting with His disciples on the Mount of Olives for the final time before His ascension back to His Father in Heaven. Overall, He appeared to them forty times since His resurrection some forty days earlier. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the most documented event in the history of this world. There has never been any reputable accounts of any witnesses disputing the appearances of the Lord Jesus to His disciples. Not a single one.

In v.9 of today's passage we read, "After he said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud hid him from their sight."

Having just reminded His disciples that they would be equipped to be His witnesses with the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Lord Jesus went up into the clouds and traveled back to heaven. It is important to point out His ascension was bodily and visible because that will be the way He will return at His Second Coming. This will not be the case when He raptures the Church. In fact, only the raptured will see Him and He will not set His feet on the earth as He will at His Second Coming. The Lord Jesus Christ ascension into heaven was yet another confirmation that He was God incarnate. 

In v.10-11 of today's passage we read, "10 As he was going, they were looking into the sky. Suddenly, two men wearing white clothes stood beside them. 11 They said, 'Men of Galilee, why are you standing here looking into the sky? Jesus, whom you saw taken up from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you saw him go.'"

While the disciples stood there looking up into the sky, there appeared two angels who were wearing white clothes. It was at His tomb after His resurrection that two angels sat, one at the place where His feet were and the other where His head had been. This was reminiscent of the Mercy Seat in the Tabernacle and in the Temple in the Old Testament. The angels asked the disciples why they looked into the sky as if the ascension of the Lord Jesus was an everyday occurrence. The disciples were like those two disciples on the road to Emmaus who wanted the Lord to stay with them physically.

In John 16 the Lord Jesus said to His disciples, "It is expedient for you that I go away." It was to the disciples advantage that the Lord Jesus return to heaven because without His ascension He would not have been able to send His Spirit to live within them. The coming of the indwelling Holy Spirit happened on the day of Pentecost. With the indwelling of the Holy Spirit are believers in Christ able to live the Christian life.

In Colossians 3:2 we read, "So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, pursue the things over which Christ presides." God is always quick to remind us that our hopes and our dreams are not to be fulfilled here on this earth. No, our hopes and our dreams must pass through the sieve of God's will for our lives. Our lives are in Christ and our home is in heaven not here on this earth. While most people in this world find their home on this earth, believers in Christ know our home to be where Christ is in heaven. 

In the last chapter of Zechariah, chapter 14, God will use the greed and blood-thirstiness of a world under the complete control of Satan to bring all of history to this final end. The end will take place in the valley of Armageddon. There, the armies of the world will gather against Jerusalem. And, that battle will produce incredible bloodshed and devastation. The enemies of Israel will seem to have accomplished their goal, but, as we are informed, God will miraculously intervene.  

At that moment, Israel's enemies will have such a great sense of confidence that they will become most vulnerable as they begin to divvying up the wealth of the Jews right there on the spot. And, just at the moment when all will seem lost for the Jews, the Lord Jesus Christ will break through the clouds. This will be the long-awaited arrival of the Day of the Lord which is mentioned in the Bible over twenty times. It will be a day of redemption for those humble enough to cry out to God for His salvation and it will be a day of judgment for those who refused to receive the free gift of forgiveness of sin through the Lord Jesus Christ.

When the Lord Jesus ascended into heaven He ascended from the Mount of Olives. And, at His Second Coming, according to Zechariah 14, He will return to the very same spot upon the Mount of Olives. He left this world from the Mount of Olives, visibly and bodily and to the Mount of Olives He will return visibly and bodily. The disciples didn't understand that the Lord Jesus left this world to subtly reveal that in the same way He left this world, He would return to it at the end. Seismologists have reported that there is a fault line running under and through the Mount of Olives. It is waiting for a very strategic set of footprints that will break that fault and cause an earthquake this world has never seen before nor shall ever see again. 

Acts 1:6-8

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6 When the apostles were all together, they asked Jesus, "Lord, are you now going to give the kingdom back to Israel?" 7 Jesus said to them, "The Father is the only One who has the authority to decide dates and times. These things are not for you to know. 8 But when the Holy Spirit comes to you, you will receive power. You will be my witnesses—in Jerusalem, in all of Judea, in Samaria, and in every part of the world." ~ Acts 1:6-8

Today, we return to our study of the book of Acts. The disciples lives at this point were turned upside down. Whereas for the past number of years they were practically with the Lord Jesus every minutes of every day, now they were seeing Him periodically. Undoubtedly, the disciples lived on pens and needles anticipating when the Lord would appear to them again. And, don't you know, they were anxious everyday that He did not show up. In a strange way the Lord Jesus' "absence" was key for the coming of the Holy Spirit. The disciples were so used to God's physical presence they had to be prepared for His presence in a different way.

The Holy Spirit is not a bonus feature of Christianity. He is essential. The Holy Spirit is a person who lives in the believer. He is God in us. The Holy Spirit is the believer's Comforter, Teacher, Guide, and Empowerer. We were never meant to live the Christian life alone. The Holy Spirit leads us daily into a more intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus. The role of the Holy Spirit is to bear witness to the Lord Jesus Christ and to draw our attention to Him as our friend, our Lord and our Savior. God has given the Holy Spirit the role of sanctifying the believer into usefulness for His kingdom while on this earth. 

In v.6 of today's passage we read, "When the apostles were all together, they asked Jesus, 'Lord, are you now going to give the kingdom back to Israel?'"

The disciples were relentless at asking the Lord Jesus if He was about to restore the physical kingdom to Israel. Their theology, yet again, betrayed them. This just highlights the utter need for us to continually refine our understanding of God and His culture. This is only done as we learn to walk in the Spirit through His Word. We were "born again" by the entrance of God's Holy Spirit into our lives. It was then that we entered into a process know as "sanctification." This process will last until we take our final breath on this earth. It is a process whereby God is inculcating His culture into our souls. Sanctification is the process whereby God is instilling His way of thinking into us. With the change of thinking, we will choose His way of living.

The disciples' problem was they thought God's kingdom was like the kingdoms of this world where might is right. This is not a biblical understanding of God's kingdom. God's kingdom refers to our right relationship with Him through the finished work of His Son on the cross. And, as we learn throughout the epistles beginning with Romans all of the way through the book of the Revelation the kingdom of God applies to all who discover the Lord Jesus as their Savior, both Jew and Gentile. The application of God's kingdom will eventually bring an end of the kingdom of the self life which is the product of this world and of Satan. Through His kingdom applied by the Holy Spirit we are being saved from ourselves.

Now, the "kingdom of Israel," spoken of by many Old Testament prophets is yet to come. In the Old Testament, there are hundreds of passages that describe a kingdom to be given again to Israel, identified with the eternal kingdom promised to David and his descendants. It will be realized during "the kingdom age" or the Millennium which will take place after the Rapture of the Church. It will be during that 1000 year reign of Christ on the earth that all of the promises God has ever made specifically to Israel for their possession of the land of Israel and the reign of the Messiah over the nations will be fulfilled.

In v.7-8 of today's passage we read, "7 Jesus said to them, 'The Father is the only One who has the authority to decide dates and times. These things are not for you to know. 8 But when the Holy Spirit comes to you, you will receive power. You will be my witnesses—in Jerusalem, in all of Judea, in Samaria, and in every part of the world.'"

The disciples were anxious for the beginning of what they thought God's kingdom would look like. They didn't realize it but God had all whole different plan in mind. So the Lord Jesus told them it was not for them to know times or seasons which the Father knows and determines. It was at that moment the Lord Jesus highlighted the fact that with the coming of the Holy Spirit believers will have access to a new power. The word "power" is the word from which we get our English word "dynomite" which will translate into the ability to be God's witnesses or martyrs. We get our word "martyrs" from the word translated "witnesses" here. God's ways are so different than ours.

The Lord told those early followers they would be His witnesses in Jerusalem, in Judea, in Samaria, and then, into all of the world. The message we gain from the book of Acts is how the powerful message of the gospel goes out into ever widening circles. When we became believers we all experienced this effect of coming to know the Lord for ourselves. It started with us getting saved, then we told our families, our friends, and then the circle widened.

The book of Acts records events that took place among the believers in Israel during a 30 year period. Thirty years of church history are included in this book. From AD 33 to AD 63, about 30 years the events of this book took place. In this book there are recorded 30 miracles, that's an average of about a miracle a year. Although the God of the Bible is a God of miracles, we must never get caught up with the miracle when the design of the miracle is that we are to be caught up with the Miracle Maker.

Once born again each believer has the potential to experience the power of God in such a way that we will be able to point others to the Lord Jesus. We limit the power of God in and through us when we slip back into independence. As long as we are aware that we need the Lord His power in unlimited. The problem we face with God's power is that it isn't always what we expect it to be. When we live our lives as if everything depends on us, we will miss the power of God. This is when the Lord has to raise our quality of faith to the level where we will stand only upon what He says. Our victory was won at the cross and that victory is Jesus overcoming us. He overcomes us by strengthening us with the power of His Spirit within us. This happens when we are convinced a little bit more today that He is the source of any victory we enjoy. The normal Christian life is lived when we tap into God's divine ability. The surrendered life is an active, daily dying to self. When we are willing to die to our own agendas, God’s power is unleashed in and through our lives.

We cower away from God's definition of things, especially His definition of His power. Like the disciples, we have a skewed understanding of God's power. Peter reminds us "His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life." God's goal in giving us His power is that we may enjoy godly lives. This means we will be known as those who love unconditionally, those who forgive, those who are actively turning our backs on the self life. And, God never leads us to godliness without His strength to do it. With God’s power at work in us, we will be able to do what we simply cannot do in our own human strength.

Acts 1:5

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John baptized people with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. ~ Acts 1:5

Today, we return to our study of the book of Acts which is a full presentation of the immediate history of the work the Lord Jesus accomplished through His followers after His ascension to heaven. The book of Acts is a record of the incarnate works of the Lord Jesus through His followers. It includes many examples of God's power exercised in the midst of even persecution. It is an account of the life from a living Christ through the yielded lives of His followers. The book of Acts, written by Luke who wrote the third gospel which bears his name, provides for us God's strategy by which He is changing this fallen world. Among many messages, the book of Acts reveals to us how God organically changes people from the inside out. He does this by instilling the gospel in the hearts of people via the promised Holy Spirit. The book of Acts is therefore an unfinished book. It has never ended and it is still being written through the lives of believers today. 

Before the Lord Jesus went to the Cross of Calvary, John the Baptist was sent by God to tell the people of Israel to turn from their sins because the promised Messiah had come. John's message of baptism of repentance specifically challenged Israel to turn from depending upon themselves. John's message was necessary because in the coming of the Lord Jesus the kingdom of God was near and Israel had to be prepared to receive Him. John’s baptism was one in water and of repentance. But more, his ministry was one of directing people to the One who was to come. John's baptism anticipated the baptism of the Holy Spirit but John probably didn't realize it until that day it was revealed to him that standing before him was the Lamb of God who came in order to take away the sin of the world.

The "water" of John’s baptism was an outward washing of the body. It was a ritual purification intended to demonstrate an inward change in the person. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is an internal purification of the soul. Throughout the Bible the Lord used "fire" to describe this baptism. As John immersed the people in the waters of the Jordan River, so the Lord Jesus immerses believers in the Holy Spirit. The coming of the Holy Spirit was God’s stamp of approval upon the work of the Lord Jesus on the cross.

The Lord Jesus told the disciples His baptism would happen to them in a few days. No set time was given. The apostles only knew that they were to wait in Jerusalem. There are those who say there is no need to perform water baptism, that it was only intended for Israel. Though it is true that John’s baptism was in water and a baptism of repentance, this does not negate the requirement for water baptism for believers under the New Covenant. In fact, it is after the establishment of the New Covenant that the Lord began to require water baptism for believers.

When we believed in the Lord Jesus as our Savior and invited Him into our lives we were "born again." This means that God made our once dead to God spirit now alive to Him. As a result we began to learn how to give our heart to the Lord. It was then that God began to give us His heart. It is primarily our brokenness that made the Lord Jesus precious to us. To be in Christ means we have arrived before God perfect through His Son in whom we believe and now we can finally rest. The Holy Spirit is now convincing us that we no longer stand condemned by God. In fact, when God looks at us, He doesn’t see our sin or our imperfections. He now sees the perfection and the righteousness of His Son applied to us.

Finally, now that we have been inhabited by God's Spirit, we are now alive to Him. It wasn't water baptism that made us alive to God. No, water baptism is an outward sign of the inner baptism. This was necessary because we had been made dead to Him by sin. Now, we not only have access to His presence, we now have access to His power. This is very important because we could not be successful at living the Christian life without the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. As believers in the Lord we have been freed from the pressure to perform or to earn or maintain God’s love. And now, by faith we live convinced that we have been made righteous in the eyes of the only One who matters. Amazingly, it is now the Lord Jesus who is defining us by His truth. As a result we are moving from trusting ourselves to trusting Him. Our lives now are an adventure. Every day our assignment is to "abide in Him" and allow Him to do in and through us what only He can do. 

Acts 1:1-4

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1 The first book I wrote was about everything Jesus began to do and teach 2 until the day he was taken up into heaven. Before this, with the help of the Holy Spirit, Jesus told the apostles he had chosen what they should do. 3 After his death, he showed himself to them and proved in many ways that he was alive. The apostles saw Jesus during the forty days after he was raised from the dead, and he spoke to them about the kingdom of God. 4 Once when he was eating with them, he told them not to leave Jerusalem. He said, "Wait here to receive the promise from the Father which I told you about." ~ Acts 1:1-4

Today, we begin a new study of the book of Acts. The title accurately reflects the contents of the book, which is a series of true stories chronicling the continuing work of the Lord Jesus in and through His early followers. The first fourteen verses of chapter one constitute an introduction to the whole book. The book begins with the spotlight primarily on the Apostle Peter and it ends with the spotlight primarily on the Apostle Paul. 

In v.1-2 of today's passage we read, "1 The first book I wrote was about everything Jesus began to do and teach 2 until the day he was taken up into heaven. Before this, with the help of the Holy Spirit, Jesus told the apostles he had chosen what they should do."

The first book Luke wrote was his account of the life and the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. Like the other gospel accounts, Luke's gospel told the story leading up to the ultimate message of the cross. He went on to declare that our salvation is dependent solely upon our faith in the death of the Lord Jesus on the cross, that it paid the penalty for our sin. Having completed that first book, Luke continued to write about all that the Lord Jesus continued to do through His Apostles.

The book of Acts begins with the arrival of the Holy Spirit. And from then Luke presents an exact and precise history of the first century believers. The most accurate description of the book of Acts really should be understood as "The Acts of the Lord Jesus through His people by the Holy Spirit." 

In v.3-4 of today's passage we read, "After his death, he showed himself to them and proved in many ways that he was alive. The apostles saw Jesus during the forty days after he was raised from the dead, and he spoke to them about the kingdom of God. 4 Once when he was eating with them, he told them not to leave Jerusalem. He said, 'Wait here to receive the promise from the Father which I told you about.'"

In these two verses we are given three specific things that prove that the Lord Jesus rose from the dead. The first is that He appeared to His followers during the forty days after His resurrection. In v.3 Luke used the word "saw" to make the argument that the Lord Jesus was alive when the apostles encountered Him. The Greek word "saw" is ophthalmia which literally means "the eyeball." The disciples "eyeballed" the Lord Jesus for forty days. They saw him over and over, not just once, but many times during that period of time. The second category of proof Luke presents is that the Lord Jesus "spoke to them about the kingdom of God." And, the third was that "he ate with them." And, as He ate, they saw the food that He was eating disappear. The apostles saw Him, they heard Him and they saw Him eat food. These three empirical evidences confirm the Lord Jesus had actually risen and was alive.

The most common theme in the teaching of the Lord Jesus is "the kingdom of God." This phrase occurs at least 68 times in the New Testament. It is a synonym of "the kingdom of heaven" which occurs about 32 times. This theme primarily refers to God’s rule and reign, both now and forevermore. It’s about God’s authority being recognized and followed, both in individual lives and in the world as a whole. It’s not just a future hope, but also a present reality experienced by faith in the Lord Jesus who promises we will never come in second when we put Him first. 

The kingdom of God is something we experience daily. When we forgive someone who doesn’t deserve it, the kingdom of God has shown up in our lives. When the poor are served, when our enemies are blessed, when we pursue justice, or we speak the truth in love, the kingdom of God has come. When a sinful human heart turns to God, heaven celebrates because the Kingdom has come. God’s rule is not about political power, cultural dominance, or visible status. It’s about His definition of all things. There is great comfort found in the fact that Christ's throne is occupied and His tomb is empty. He arose and went forth to establish His kingdom in the hearts of willing people and the pillars of His kingdom are made of humility, love, mercy, grace, truth, joy, honesty, patience and gentleness, among others.

Today's passage ends with the promise of the Holy Spirit who carries out the promise of God that He will always be with us. When we were "born again" we were made alive to God and empowered by God to do His will in this world. It is due to the Holy Spirit's presence in our lives that we persevere in the faith. It is the Holy Spirit who applies the life and the mind of the Lord Jesus to us and in us. It is the Holy Spirit who teaches us the way of grace that we might teach others the same.

Matthew 28:18-20

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18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. ~ Matthew 28:18-20

Today, we conclude our study of the gospel according to Matthew. When it appeared to the disciples that all hope was lost the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ happened. Following His resurrection from the dead, He appeared to His followers no less than ten times. According to Acts 1:3, "He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God." Jesus Christ is the only person in history of whom we were told thousand of years in advance that He would be born of a virgin, that He would live a perfect life, die a perfect death and be raised from the dead. It was King David who wrote a thousand years before about His crucifixion and at a time crucifixion was unknown as a means of execution.

In v.18 of today's passage we read, "And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, 'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.'"

You will remember that Matthew began his gospel by introducing the Lord Jesus as the King. He gave His royal lineage and had a group of kings seek Him as the King. And now, as Matthew concludes this account he quotes the Lord Jesus as having said, "All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth." The authority given to the Lord Jesus by His Father made Him King over all kings. This means the Lord Jesus is in absolute charge of everything. It was Satan who had arrested authority over this world from Adam in the Garden of Eden. When the Lord Jesus came and lived a perfect life and died a perfect death, He was granted by His Father complete authority over everything, even over this fallen world. His authority is based upon who He is and subsequently what He has done on the cross on our behalf. His Father affirmed His authority when He raised Him from the dead. 

In v.19-20 of today's passage we read, "19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

All believers have been granted the responsibility of making disciples. The calling of every believer is that we point people to our Savior praying they see Him for who He is and that they become His followers. The verb "make disciples" is an imperative meaning we are held responsible by God to be engaged in the lives of others around us to the point that we influence them to become followers of the Lord Jesus. But, we mustn't forget that He is the One who does the convincing and the discipling. We factor into the process as we share our personal relationship with the Lord Jesus with the lost and how God has led us to Himself and through this life. Integral to all of this is the involvement of His Spirit and His Word.

Even though it is the Lord Jesus who makes disciples, He involves us in bringing to Himself men and women, boys and girls. Our motive to participate in this work must be to bring glory to the Lord. We must not make disciples with selfish motives. The true sign that we are engaged in a way that brings glory to the Lord is that we are quick to give Him ALL the glory. As a result, our mission is to win the lost to the Lord Jesus. Interestingly, the Great Commission is repeated in all the four gospels but not in the epistles.

The Lord Jesus said, "Make disciples of all the nations" revealing yet again that God has always had a heart for all people groups. The word "nation" literally means "ethnic people groups." His desire has always been to bring lost people into a relationship with Himself. Interestingly when the Lord met with Abraham in Genesis 12 He had all the nations or all ethnic people groups in mind. 

In order to accomplish this task of "making disciples" the Lord has given us three directives: to go, to baptize, and to teach. Literally, He said, "as you are going." Our commission is as we live our daily lives we are to expect Him to bring people into our lives who have yet to believe on the Lord Jesus as their Savior. He does not want us to wait until the world comes to us but that we are on mission, going to them. Once they come, we are to teach them the truths God has taught us. And, it isn’t just that they are taught. No, it is that we give them an example of what it means to enter into a personal relationship with the Lord God and to walk with Him and to abide in Him.

To baptize means to immerse those who believe in the Lord Jesus in water. God gave baptism to be an outward sign of an inward condition. Baptism is synonymous with salvation, though it in no way saves anyone. Water baptism is an object lesson of what happened to us when we first believed in the Lord Jesus and were baptized into the Spirit of God or were born again. Baptism is the outward visible symbol of what had been done by God in our hearts. 

When we were saved, we entered into a personal relationship with the Lord where He is increasingly becoming to us more and more real. This is where teaching comes into the process. A person who comes to Christ will be a learner. His learning is always moved forward by his hunger. This hunger was created by God and satisfied by Him, as well. When we were born again by the Holy Spirit, He delivered into our souls a desire to know Him. Thus, we seek Him in order to find Him. And, when we find Him, He teaches us His culture. We cannot teach others that which we have never been taught.

Today's passage ends with: "and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

When sin entered this world, we were separated from God's presence. The separation exists because God is perfect and we are not. A part of God’s perfection is His justice which demands that sin be judged. This is why the Lord Jesus came to die and to deal a death blow to death. This is what makes it possible for a perfect God to dwell in the hearts of sinful people. It also explains why God is always telling His people to build a place like the tabernacle or the temple. He issued those commands so that He could dwell among His people. The death and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus made it possible for God to dwell within the believer, so the buildings are no longer needed. And, the secret to any success that we experience is His abiding presence within us.

Matthew 28:16-17

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16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. ~ Matthew 28:16-17

Today, we return to our study of Matthew 28 which is the ultimate climax of the whole gospel. This is where the ministry of the Lord Jesus has always been pointing us. The ultimate and primary purpose of every born again believer in Jesus Christ is discovered in today's passage. It is the same primary purpose of the Lord Jesus and He desires it to be our primary purpose as well. If we get this right everything else will fall into its proper place.

In v.16 of today's passage we read, "Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go."

In order to frame up our ultimate purpose on this earth, we must first know how we arrived here. Just like each of the twelve disciples, we were called into a personal relationship with God through the message delivered to us through His Son. That message we know to be the "gospel" which literally means "good news." However, we will never truly appreciate the fact that it is good news until we are fully aware of the bad news. The bad news is that we were all conceived sinful, wretched and at odds with God. 

The disciples went to Galilee because the Lord Jesus had told them to meet Him there. The obedience of the disciples lead them further into an intimate relationship with the Lord, as it always does. The greater their intimacy with the Lord yielded a greater capacity for them to worship Him. That which we worship the most defines us best. Since God is the greatest reality in our lives then worship of Him is the most important thing we will ever do. Sadly, most think worship is about themselves feeling something but it is about our preoccupation with God whether it gives us good feelings or not. True worship happens when we treasure God above all.

In Romans 5:12 we read, "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned."

We are all sinners not because we sin but because we were born sinners. This world was contaminated by sin when the serpent deceived Adam into eating from the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. Sin is anything that is contrary to what God has defined it. Adam had no reason to not be defined by God but he listened to the cunning deceitfulness of the one who was cast out of heaven because he wanted to be his own god.

Every little brand new birthed baby is an undeveloped ball of iniquity. According to Ephesians 2:1-3 every person ever birthed  was born dead in sin. In fact, according to Romans 5:10 we were the enemies of God because no one could escape the wide influence of sin. According to Romans 3:9-11 we all were contaminated some much by sin that God said there is no human who is righteous. This is the bad news that so beautifully frames up the good news.

Like the early disciples, once we learned of our rebellious sinfulness and then we heard to gospel, we turn to God for help by trusting in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. In Romans 5:10-11 we read, "10 Even when we were God's enemies, he made peace with us, because his Son died for us. Yet something even greater than friendship is ours. Now that we are at peace with God, we will be saved by the life of his Son. 11 And, in addition to everything else, we are happy because God sent our Lord Jesus Christ to make peace with us." God did something that we could not do for ourselves, He substantiated the truth by sending His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ who laid down His life as a sacrifice for our sin. It was the Lord Jesus who earned a rich standing for us before God.

Having come to the Lord Jesus as their Savior the disciples followed Him. After He died, they hid out of fear that they would be treated like the Lord. The didn't understand that He was the Lamb of God who came to this earth to remedy our sin. And after the resurrection the Lord Jesus told His disciples to go to Galilee and wait for Him to show up there.

In v.17 of today's passage we read, "When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted."

When the disciples next saw the Lord Jesus in Galilee, they worshiped Him. This gets at our ultimate purpose which is to be defined by Him. Now, the fact is fellowship is an absolute essential for all of us but it is not our primary purpose. And yes, teaching is essential, and so is praise. But none of them, and not all of them in combination, are the primary purpose of our lives. None of these very worthy things are underscored as our primary purpose and why we are here on this earth. 

Our primary purpose is the ultimate message in Matthew, because it is the climactic one. When man fell in sin in the garden, because of man’s fall, all of the human race was condemned to death and to hell. The whole human race died to God in the sin of Adam. But immediately, God set out to redeem man back to Himself, out of His gracious love.

According to the last verse of today's passage, "When the disciples saw the Lord Jesus they worshiped Him." They worshiped the Lord! They worshiped Him because He deserved their obedience and respect. He earned our obedience and respect through what He did on that cross. When we obey Him, we demonstrate our respect of Him. When we respect Him to the point of obedience we reveal He is worthy. Someone once defined worship as "worth-ship." True worship is a matter of the heart expressed through a lifestyle of obedience. We must be careful here because we will never be perfect in our obedience to God. The real issue is really an issue of the heart. Due to God's unimaginable generosity toward us through the death of His Son, we choose to respond to Him through our worship or our attempts to show Him worth through being defined by Him.

As the last verse of today's passage suggests, key to our ability to worship God is how we respond to our doubts and questions. Doubt is a key ingredient in the development of our faith in the Lord Jesus. If we understood everything, we would have no need for faith. But, since we don’t understand everything, we must give place for faith. Implicit to faith is doubt. Doubt does not have to be the enemy of faith, it can actually be something that strengthens our faith. Our doubts are normal because they are based on faith and belief in something. It is only as we wrestle with our questions that we can possibly become stronger in our faith. Like these disciples, may we be those who doubt our doubts, and as a result we will learn to help others to do the same!

Matthew 28:11-15

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11 Now while they were going, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all the things that had happened. 12 When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, 13 saying, "Tell them, 'His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.' 14 And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will appease him and make you secure." 15 So they took the money and did as they were instructed; and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day. ~ Matthew 28:11-15

Today, we return to our study of Matthew 28 where the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ is front and center. If He had not been raised from the dead, we could not have a personal relationship with God because our sin would have won the battle over Him. The fact that He rose from the dead proves that our sin has been dealt a death blow. In Romans 10:9 we read, "If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved." This verse accentuates the fact that our faith in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ sealed our acceptance with God. 

In v.11 of today's passage we read, "Now while they were going, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all the things that had happened."

Not only did the followers of the Lord Jesus witness His resurrection, the guards who had been placed there by the first century religious establishment saw it as well. As this verse indicates, once the women were going to Jerusalem to tell the disciples that the Lord Jesus had been raised, the guards who had the responsibility to make sure His body was not taken during the night went to the chief priests with the bad news. 

In v.12-14 of today's passage we read, "12 When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, 13 saying, 'Tell them, 'His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.' 14 And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will appease him and make you secure."

There was no attempt on the behalf of the religious leaders of Israel to verify what the soldiers said. They knew it was true and they immediately went into damage control. Had they not believed the story of the guards, they would have responded differently. They would have formed a massive search party for the body of the Lord Jesus. They would have garnered Pilate's involvement. They would have put out a reward for anyone who would lead them to the dead body. 

Rather than believe in the resurrection, these supposed religious leaders paid the soldiers to be quiet about what had actually happened. Then they told the soldiers to say His disciples stole His body during the night while they slept. But, the disciples were hiding in the upper room because they were fearful that they would be killed. But for arguments sake, let's assume the disciples stole the body. Now, for them to steal the body, the guards had to be asleep all at the same time. But, the Roman guards knew that if they fell asleep and the disciples came and stole His body, they would die. Undoubtedly, the guards slept in shifts.

In v.15 of today's passage we read, "So they took the money and did as they were instructed; and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day." 

Since Matthew’s Gospel was written some thirty years after the resurrection, the story that actually happened would have easily been debunked but that didn't happen. In fact, it was the resurrection that bolstered these once afraid disciples into turning the world at that time upside down. In fact, according to the book of Acts, the disciples went out into the street in Jerusalem and preached the gospel and thousands believed their message. And if the body had been stolen, all they had to do was to produce the body.

The greatest argument for the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the changed lives of the disciples. If they had stolen His body, they would not have put themselves on the line like they did. In fact, all of them except John were martyred for the faith. Bartholomew was flayed alive, John was boiled in oil. He survived the ordeal and then he was vanished to Patmos. Matthew with beaten with a club and if you go through the list of all of the apostles, all of them died a violent death except John who was vanquished to Patmos and then survived and died in Ephesus. If they knew the resurrection was a lie, they would not have had the consistent testimonies that they exhibited.

The single most important event in history is the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. History shows that there was an explosion of Christianity across the Roman empire in the first century. This suggests that the Lord Jesus actually rose from the dead. The fact that no one debunked the resurrection during the first century underscores its veracity. But, its veracity is most proven by the changed lives of the disciples. They were so convinced that the Lord Jesus resurrected that they were dramatically transformed from fearful cowards to courageous martyrs. The lives they lived from that point onward underscores 2 Corinthians 5:17 which reads, "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come." 

Amazingly, the resurrection power of God is not a power that makes a great demonstration. Most often His power is quiet. We are so used to power that makes a big splash, but His power is most often subtle and unassuming. We do not expect it until it happens. And then, we wonder if it was Him. His power is recognized best when we react to it. The Apostle Paul reminds us that God's power is made perfect in our weakness. We don't like weakness, but weakness makes us more attuned to God. God's power shows up when we embrace our weakness and inadequacy. God reduced Gideon's army from 32,000 soldiers to 300 in order to defeat Israel's true enemy ... themselves. With God less is more and it leaves no room for boasting on our behalf. He deliberately thinned out the army so that it was so tiny that there would be no way that Israel could say that its strength gave it the victory.