vs 1 - The DAY of Pentacost took place 1,447 years after the FEAST of Pentacost was instituted.
This feast was to remember the giving of the Law of God to Moses on the Mountain, and served as the inaguration of the Jewish church.
God is never in a rush - consider the Great Reformation - it played out over hundreds of years.
vs 3 - Tongues of fire came down, not the crazy language we all think about, but the wet ones in our mouths.
God's Law was accompanied by fire, and so were these tongues.
God's Law through the Spirit was now written on our hearts, but more than that was happening - the very TONGUE that spoke the Law into existance was going to live inside of people!
God was making His dwelling inside of man, and He would manifest Himself through their speech!
vs 6 - The command of Jesus was to go into all the world and make disciples, but how could they do that if they didn't speak the world's languages?
The miracle of Pentacost dealt with this issue, and gave the disciples the ability to speak in native languages of the nations.
Jesus didn't even utilize this ability - He only spoke in one language, and that's why He said, "greater gifts than these you will do...."
vs 13 - The people standing around heard the disciples speaking in languages they had never heard and it sounded like gibberish, so they blamed it on the wine.
The devil will always have a faulty explanation for the miracles of God.
vs 32 - Peter is doing the very thing Jesus commanded them to do just before He ascended - to be a WITNESS.
He explained his eye-witness account of Jesus and God's Word according to the OT.
vs 37-38 - Repentance - Peter gave the best response ever to the question, "What must we do?"
Anytime you ask that question about anything, always start with repentance.
When you start with repentance this leads to humility, and God gives grace to the humble!
Acts 2 (6/5/14)
The Spirit
June 5, 2014 • Benham Brothers
Acts 1:4-5 (6/20/19)
June 20, 2019 • Benham Brothers
* Luke wrote acts as a continuation of his gospel. * Acts bridges the gap the gospels and Romans. * It shows how the church sprang up and how the gospel began to spread. * Wiersbe - “The Book of Acts is also the account of the work of the Holy Spirit in and through the church. The Gospel of Luke records what Jesus “began both to do and teach” in His human body, and the Book of Acts tells us what Jesus continued to do and teach through His spiritual body, the church.” * Jesus had already given them the charge to go into all the world to make disciples, yet He tells them to wait to do it. * First, they needed to be clothed in power. * They had to stay in Jerusalem in order to get it. * At this point Jerusalem was the most dangerous place on earth for a Christ follower. * They could’ve been killed like Jesus was. * They also could’ve easily said, “Let’s hurry and go fulfill our calling.” * But they waited and showed us a great principle - Power is often a result of pace! * So they had to do two things - wait (move at God’s pace) and resist (the fear of being killed). * Power is the ability to do something. Authority is the right to do it. * Christ had given them authority, now they had to wait on the power. * While they waited, they resisted the enemy (fear).
Acts 1:6-8 (6/5/14)
June 5, 2014 • Benham Brothers
Jesus had now risen from the dead and was giving His last instructions before He ascended to Heaven. The disciples asked if now was the time He would restore the Kingdom back to Israel. They were under Roman bondage and they thought He was going to restore the kingdom. Jesus was going to do that, but He wasn't going to do it from the outside-in, He was going to do it from the inside-out. Observe: 1) Jesus didn't deny the physical restoration of Israel, but He knew that if spiritual restoration took place first then physical restoration would be the natural outpouring of that. He was going to restore the kingdom from the inside-out. Jesus is more interested in changing a person than a persons' behavior because He knows behavior will follow naturally when a person is changed on the inside. 2) Before Jesus made the nation of Israel "right" He needed to make people "right," so He was going to actually come and live "inside" of people to do this. Jesus changed their identities - He "made" them brand new. 3) He gave them their mission - to simply be His witnesses! That's it - just tell the world what He's done and how He lives inside of people. Testimonies are so powerful because they cannot be debated - you can't debate someone's experience. Internal transformation must precede External Transformation. https://dl-http://web.dropbox.com/get/podcasts%20-%202014
Acts 1:15-22 (6/16/16)
June 16, 2016 • Benham Brothers
• Can you imagine the conversation amongst the disciples about Judas after Jesus died? • But then Jesus shows up and confirms their deepest hopes of His resurrection. • They weren’t focused on Judas anymore, but Jesus. • Then Christ gives them new marching orders and ascends to Heaven. • These disciples were no longer a band of buddies with no purpose, but now a band of brothers united to honor their king. • But what about Judas’s spot? • Notice how Peter handled the situation - he pointed to Scripture. • He was able to see God at work even in the situation with Judas’ betrayal. • Notice: • 1) There was an obvious situation that need to be dealt with. • 2) Peter went to the Scripture and found a passage. • 3) Peter applied the truth of God’s Word to the situation. • 4) He then made the proper application. • In doing this he kept his emotions from taking the lead. • This is how to properly handle any situation you find yourself in.