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40 And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.” 41 Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. 42 And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. ~ Acts 2:40-42
Today, we return to our study of Acts 2 where the Apostle Peter is concluding his first recorded sermon. As a result of the sound of the coming of the Holy Spirit, thousands were present in the Temple courtyards to hear Peter's simple presentation of the gospel. As Peter spoke the people were cut deeply into their hearts to the point that they saw their need to believe on the Lord Jesus as their Savior.
In v.40 of today's passage we read, "And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, 'Be saved from this perverse generation.'"
Peter left no questions unanswered. His words that day were fully sufficient to convince those willing enough to believe on the Lord Jesus as their Savior to do so. Believing on the Lord Jesus would cause those who believed to be rescued from "this perverse generation." The word translated here as "perverse" literally means "bent spiritually and unacceptable to God." Israel lacked the Holy Spirit, thus, they were unable to measure up to God’s perfect standard. Their thoughts were crooked and thus their standing before God was not good enough. Only those who repented from the natural mindset could be saved.
In v.41 of today's passage we read, "Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them."
The word translated "received" communicates a heightened sense of joy as the people received God's free gift of forgiveness. These people heard the word preached and they had faith that the words preached were true and so they believed in the Lord. Thus, they were saved. And, as an outward demonstration of their born again status three thousand were baptized and added to the family of God that day. The number three thousand fulfills a pattern that is set forth in Scripture in which a theological point is made.
In Exodus 32:25-29 we learn that at Mt. Sinai, which according to Galatians 4 symbolizes the temple in Jerusalem, the law was received, and it was written on tablets of stone. Those tablets were given to Moses but were broken at the base of the mountain because the people turned away from the Lord to a false god. After this, three thousand people died because of their sins. In Acts 2, at the temple in Jerusalem, the word of the Lord was again given, but this time it was written on the tablets of the hearts of the people. In this, three thousand people were saved because of their faith in Christ Jesus. For those three thousand who died at Sinai, they died in sin because of their deeds and their failure to believe. For the three thousand who believed on the Lord Jesus in Jerusalem, they died to sin because of faith in the deeds of the Lord Jesus.
In v.42 of today's passage we read, "And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers."
Those who had previously believed consistently grew in the essentials of the Christian faith. Remarkably these had first been among those who mocked what they saw the Holy Spirit do in the first followers that day in Jerusalem. Once they realized the magnitude of what had occurred in the coming of their Messiah, they were wholly converted. There is no record of any of these people falling away from the faith. Rather, their lives had been completely changed by the gospel.
The essentials of the Christian faith are clearly laid out here: The teachings of the Bible, fellowship, the Lord's Supper, and prayer. Nothing must thwart the believer from these essentials or these practices where we find no ambiguity. Everything else compared to these are negotiable. The expository teaching of the Bible, fellowship one with another, observing the Lord's Supper, and prayer are essential for the believer in Christ.
Someone once said, "The New Testament is the Old Testament revealed and the Old Testament is the New Testament concealed." Whatever is taught in the local church must be founded upon the Word of God which is able to change us from the inside out. The whole of the Bible has one main subject: The Lord Jesus Christ. Drawing on God’s wisdom is a privilege that’s made possible by the work of the Holy Spirit, who inspired each word contained in the Bible. The Holy Spirit speaks to us by illuminating our understanding of the Scriptures, transforming us so that we can grow in faith and in obedience to our God.
The Greek word for "fellowship," "koinonia" is used here for the first time. The New Testament was written in Koine Greek, the common language, not classical Greek. "Koinonia" is "to hold or share something in common." This word literally means "to have in common" or "life together." These new believers were bound together in the Lord Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit. Their commitment to one another demonstrated their commitment to Christ. Their fellowship was about what they gave, not what they received. True fellowship costs us for God rarely blesses us with us only in mind.
In 1 Corinthians 11:23-24 we read, "For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, 'This is my body, which is for you.'" The early church thus referred to the Lord’s Supper as the "breaking of bread." We are told that these early believers "broke bread" regularly together. They did it so that they would remember and keep before them daily the crucifixion and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus had given the disciples in the upper room the bread and the wine to help them to worship Him for His greatest demonstration of love toward us. True worship is found always at the foot of the cross.
In Acts 1:14 we read, "And these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers." The disciples for ten days after Christ's ascension and His advent prayed together consistently. In Acts 1:24-25, the critical decision about who would replace Judas was made in prayer. The church was born out of prayer and they devoted themselves to prayer. In Colossians 4:2 we read, "Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving." Prayer is simply having an on-going conversation with God.
The Lord Jesus always works in community. One of the greatest gifts the we could offer our broken and alienated society is a vision of intense social belonging. For that reason we find no personal pronouns in the earliest description of the church in Acts. If any group of believers has the desire to remain faithful to the Lord they must have commitment to these pillars of the faith: Doctrine, Fellowship, Worship and Prayer.
