Have you ever been at a church service or heard a sermon where a real large number of people came forward to accept the Lord Jesus as Savior? That would be a very special and blessed occasion. In our passage today we read of the day that the Apostle Peter preached a message to a large crowd of people who had gathered together, and about 3,000 people accepted the Lord Jesus as the Messiah and their Savior.
Earlier in the chapter that our passage is taken from the Holy Spirit had descended upon the apostles and disciples that were gathered together. As they left the room where they had been gathered in while praying, and going outside, it quickly became apparent to the people in Jerusalem that the power of the Holy Spirit was upon these men and women. As a crowd gathered, questioning what was going on, Peter used this opportunity to tell them what had happened, and preached his first sermon, telling them about Jesus.
Peter and the other apostles were preaching the Gospel right in the center of Jerusalem, right where Jesus, only several weeks prior, had been sentenced to death. Just a few weeks ago they had all run and hid for their lives when Jesus was arrested, tried, and executed. Peter had even been afraid of a servant girl, and denied knowing Jesus. Now, though, he is boldly preaching the Gospel to the gathered crowd , including the very Pharisees and Jewish religious leaders who had ordered Jesus put to death. What brought about this change? It was the Holy Spirit, which they had just received.
The apostles and other disciples knew, truly knew down deep in their soul, the truth of the resurrection. If they had really stolen and hid the dead body of Jesus, which the religious leaders claimed, would they have continued to lie to the point of death? What would be the purpose of that? Some people can be deceived about a lie that someone has told them, they believe it, and might even die for it. However to knowingly make up a lie, would someone continue to proclaim it while being tortured and executed, like many of these men and women would be?
In verse 37 we read how after Peter finished proclaiming the Word of God, and the message of how Jesus died for their sins and had risen from the dead, the sword of the Holy Spirit of God cut into the people’s hearts (Hebrews 4:12). The crowd then asked Peter and the other disciples what they needed to do. Are we prepared to answer this question when someone asks us what to do to be saved? The first thing that Peter answered was that they needed to repent (vs. 38). After being told about Jesus, His death, and resurrection, one must repent and turn away from sin. They must change the direction of their life of rebellion against God. They need to turn to Christ and depend on Him for forgiveness. Genuine repentance involves more than just fearing the consequences of God’s judgment. The evil of sin must be forsaken, and Jesus must be totally embraced.
Peter also said that after the people believed Christ and repented they needed to be baptized. Baptism, itself, doesn’t save anyone, but it is something the Lord Jesus told us to do. It is something believers should do as an act of obedience to Him. Baptism publicly identifies the believer with Jesus and the Church. Through the waters of baptism we identify with Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection. We are baptized to show that our sins have been cleansed, not to cleanse our sins.
That first sermon of Peter’s on that first Pentecost after Jesus’ ascension to heaven was a straightforward one. Believe and accept Jesus’ death and resurrection, repent, and then follow through with baptism. That day about 3,000 men and women believed and were saved!
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