The Refutation (Acts 2:14-15)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/20/2017 9:43 AM

My Worship Time                                                                                        Focus:  The Refutation

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                       Reference:  Acts 2:14-15

            Message of the verses:  “14 But Peter, taking his stand with the eleven, raised his voice and declared to them: "Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and give heed to my words. 15 “For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day;”

            As we were looking at the end of the gospel of John we talked about the great trial that Peter went through that is the denial of Jesus Christ three times that he knew Him.  Afterwards Peter wanted to go back to fishing even though he had been the spokesmen for the disciples when Jesus had His earthly ministry.  In every list of the disciples given in the gospels we see Peter’s name first so it was natural that he become the spokesmen after Christ returned to heaven.  My point here is that because Jesus had chosen Peter to do this task, I believe that is why Peter had to go through that awful time he went through as he denied the Lord three times.

            We see in verse 14 that Peter takes his stand along with the eleven as he faces the crowd to confront them.  In the eleven it includes Matthias who was chosen earlier to replace Judas.

            We see the word “declared” in verse 14 which is the same word used in 2:4 and this word speaks of a Spirit-inspired utterance.  Peter was saying what the Holy Spirit wanted Him to say in this exact situation.  John MacArthur writes that Peter was probably speaking in Aramaic as that was the language that the residents of Jerusalem spoke.  “The Semitic expression ‘let this be known to you, and give heed to my words’ expresses Peter’s confidence and boldness.  There is no hesitation or equivocation in his heart.  Commentator Albert Barns observes,

‘Peter did not intimate that this was a doubtful matter, or one that could not be explained.  His address was respectful, yet firm.  He proceeded calmly to show them their error.  When the enemies of religion deride us or the gospel, we should answer them kindly and respectfully, yet firmly.  We should reason with them coolly, and convince them of their error, Proverbs 15:1.  In this case Peter acted on the principle which he afterward enjoined on all, 1 Peter 3:15, ‘Be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.’”

            Peter is a much different man since being filled with the Spirit of God than he was when he often put his foot in his mouth before this happened to him.

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Assyria” (2 Kings 17:3).

Today’s Bible question:  “Who was raised from the dead in answer to Peter’s prayer?”

Answer in our next SD.

7/20/2017 10:03 AM

PT-2 "Intro to Acts 2:14-21)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/18/2017 7:46 PM

My Worship Time                                                                      Focus:  PT-2 Intro to Acts 2:14-21

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 2:14-21

            Message of the verses:  “14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: 17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,  and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,  and your young men shall see visions,  and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants  in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above  and signs on the earth below,  blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness  and the moon to blood,  before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. 21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved’ (ESV).”

            We left off in our last SD by talking about preaching.  In the true church ever since it began in Acts 2 we have seen that it began with preaching and that is the central place in the life of the true church throughout the ages.  In earlier Spiritual Diaries I have mentioned that after all of the Apostles left the scene that the individual churches all would have leaders.  Pastors, preachers, Bishops, and other names have been listed as the leaders of the church.  God through the person of the Holy Spirit is the One who chooses these church leaders and then He speaks to the hearts of these men what it is He wants them to preach about.  As church leaders begin to read and study the Bible the Spirit of God will work in their hearts to show them what He wants them to use as their text to bring about their messages.  It has to be done this way or else it would be done by man who would get the glory.  Having man make up what he wants to talk about happens in a lot of churches and this is totally wrong.  I remember many years ago after a church split that the then acting pastor who by the way lost the election told me that he thought that he would preach on the sovereignty of God.  He thought, not I have prayed about this and it is my conclusion that the Lord desires me to speak on the sovereignty of God, but it was his decision.  He just lost the election and figured a way to get a new vote and wants to preach on the sovereignty of God.

            I have also mentioned that I believe that the seven churches in chapters two and three of Revelation are in the order of what the dominant church will be as we move through church history.  In his book Hal Lindsey writes the following on the prophetic application of the church at Sardis:  “The church of Sardis symbolized the Reformation Era.  During this period of history the church was reformed, but not revived!  Some essential doctrines were reclaimed, such as the truth that the people can be justified with God only by faith, but the changes did not shake loose the elaborate rituals and human traditions of the medieval church.  Complacency and new legalism set in, and only a few tasted the power of the Holy Spirit for Christian living.” This time period which Martin Luther was involved in set the stage of the great revivals that followed in the next church age, the Philadelphian church age where some wonderful preachers like Jonathan Edwards, D. L. Moody, George Whitefield, John and Charles Wesley came on the scene with great preaching and teaching.  I can’t forget Spurgeon who was one of the great preachers of this era.  The point is that this era had great preachers in them.  Today this is not always the case as some churches have stopped the different services that use to happen so that means less preaching. 

            John MacArthur writes “A godly man, gifted by the Spirit to preach the Word, has no equal in the presentation of God’s truth.  It is the God-ordained method for evangelism and edification.  The weakness of the contemporary church is largely due to the decline in powerful biblical preaching.  Paul set the standard in bold relief when he said,

‘1 And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. 2 For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. 3  I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, 4  and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.’ (1 Cor. 2:1-5)

“The apostle was inspired by God to ask the question, ‘How shall they hear without a preacher?’  Then he affirmed the nobility of the preacher when he quoted from Isaiah 52:7 ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring glad tidings of good things!’ (Rom. 10:14-15)”

We will look at more of this introduction, and in particular preaching in our next SD.

My SD is late because I am under the weather and will try and get tomorrows done earlier (God willing).

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Simon of Cyrene” (Matthew 27:32).”

Tomorrows Bible question:  “Who said ‘“Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone?’”

Answer in our next SD.

7/18/2017 8:19 PM

Intro to Acts 2:14-21

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/19/2017 12:55 PM

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  Intro to Acts 2:14-21

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 2:14-21

            Message of the verses:  “14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: 17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19  And I will show wonders in the heavens above  and signs on the earth below,  blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; 20  the sun shall be turned to darkness  and the moon to blood,  before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. 21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’”

            We have been talking about Biblical preaching as seen in the verses above.  John MacArthur writes:  “The content of biblical preaching can be summed up in two Greek words:  kerugma and didache.  Kerugma derives from the verb kerusso, which means ‘to proclaim,’ or ‘to announce a proclamation.’  At least five elements make up the New Testament kerugma.  First, it presented Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecy.  Second, it described Him as God in human flesh.  Third, it focused on His life and work, especially His death and resurrection.  Fourth, it spoke of His second coming.  Finally it declared that salvation was only through faith in Him, and that those who rejected Him as Lord and Savior would be eternally damned.

            “In addition to kerugma, or proclamation, true biblical preaching must also contain didache, or teaching.  Didache, from which the English word ‘didactic’ derives, refers to the doctrinal content within the preaching of the kerugma.  The epistles are largely composed of this theology of salvation that provides the depth and breadth and height of preaching.  True preaching is proclaiming the great truths and undergirding them with the richness of the supernatural profound wisdom revealed throughout Scripture, particularly the New Testament.  There is no such thing as genuine biblical preaching that is devoid of doctrinal content.”

            Now as we go through the book of Acts we will see that frequently it will record that men were persuaded to believe and then be redeemed by the preaching that the Apostles did.  This of course began with Peter’s sermon in Acts chapter two, and then there are many other examples of this going on throughout the book of Acts.  In the last half of Acts we see this comes from Paul’s preaching and even while he was in prison in Rome Paul kept up his ministry of preaching and also persuading men:

23 When they had set a day for Paul, they came to him at his lodging in large numbers; and he was explaining to them by solemnly testifying about the kingdom of God and trying to persuade them concerning Jesus, from both the Law of Moses and from the Prophets, from morning until evening. 24 Some were being persuaded by the things spoken, but others would not believe (Acts 28:23-24).”

            John MacArthur writes “The use of the term ‘persuaded’ suggest the apostolic preaching had both a logical flow and doctorial content.  And Paul affirmed that saving faith comes by hearing a message about Christ (Rom. 10:17).

            “Before launching into the main body of his sermon, Peter discusses what is immediately on the people’s minds—the phenomena of Pentecost.  He begins by giving a refutation of the scurrilous charge of drunkenness.  Then he offers and explanation of Pentecost based on Old Testament prophecy.”

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Jesus” (Mark 10:18).

Today’s Bible question:  “Of what country was Shalmanneser king?”

Answer in our next SD.

7/19/2017 1:21 PM

Intro to Acts 2:14-21)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/17/2017 8:59 AM

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  Introduction to Acts 2:14-21

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                       Reference:  Acts 2:14-21

            Message of the verses:  “14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: 17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above  and signs on the earth below,  blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness  and the moon to blood,  before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. 21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved’ (ESV).”

            In his introduction to these verses John MacArthur writes mostly about preaching and proclaiming the Word of God as the major thing that the New Testament Church is to do.  He also talks about different things that modern churches do, like putting on seminars, having small group activities, where one can share things.  I know in the church that I use to go to they stopped the Wednesday night prayer meeting where there was always preaching at the beginning of it, they also stopped the Sunday night service to begin small group Bible studies.  In all of this preaching which is the first thing that happened when the church began is being left out.  I don’t have a problem with small group Bible studies, but when they take the place of a church service where preaching takes place that is a different story.  When we look at the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ while He was on earth preaching was a major theme as we see in Luke 4:16-21 where we will see the Lord’s view of His ministry: 

“16 And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. 17 And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written, 18 “THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR. HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, 19 TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD." 20 And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."”

 

            Paul speaks about the call to preach in 1 Corinthians 1:17-25: 

“17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void. 18 For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written, "I WILL DESTROY THE WISDOM OF THE WISE, AND THE CLEVERNESS OF THE CLEVER I WILL SET ASIDE." 20 Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. 22 For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; 23 but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, 24 but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

            We will look at this subject, the subject of the importance of preaching in our next SD.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Listening to God’s Word being preached is something that I look forward to each Sunday morning, and in many Sunday evening services.  In preparation for my Spiritual Diaries I will at times listen to the preaching of John MacArthur in order to get more insights into what the verses that I am looking at mean.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Trust the Lord as I go through a trial that was brought about by me, that Christ will give me wisdom and also use this to be good for me and bring glory to His name.

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “The shield of faith” (Ephesians 6:16).

Today’s Bible question:  “Who was compelled to carry the cross of Jesus?”

Answer in our next SD.

7/17/2017 9:30 AM

           

The Explanation of the Spirit's Coming (Acts 2:12-13)

 

SPIRITUAL DIAR FOR 7/16/2017 6:56 AM

My Worship Time                                                 Focus:  The Explanation of the Spirit’s Coming

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Acts 2:12-13

            Message of the verses:  “12 And they all continued in amazement and great perplexity, saying to one another, "What does this mean?" 13 But others were mocking and saying, "They are full of sweet wine."”

            When people hear the Word of God there are two different ways they can react to it, the first is that they accept it, while the second is that it is rejected.  We can see these two options in these two verses from Acts chapter two.  The one’s who asked “What does this mean” will soon find out as Peter will begin to preach the very first sermon in the Church age.

            John MacArthur concludes this short section which is the last section from his commentary as we will begin to look at “The First Christian Sermon—Part 1 The Introduction: Explaining Pentecost” in our next SD.  “At the same time the others were mocking and saying, ‘they are full of sweet wine.’  Like the Pharisees who heard Jesus’ claims and saw the confirming miracles, but concluded He was of the devil (Matt. 12:24ff.), these scoffers rejected the evidence that this was a work of God.  Instead, the proposed the ridiculous hypothesis that the apostles were ‘full of sweet wine.’  They tried to explain away the miracle of speaking in languages as a drunken frolic.  Tragically, their skepticism was to harden into full-fledged opposition toward the message and the messengers (cf. 4:7ff.; 5:17-18, 40; 7:58-60).  However, no amount of opposition could stop the work of God that began at Pentecost.”  The church has surely has had its ups and downs, but the true church is always in the world since it began in Acts chapter two.  In our study of the book of Revelation we saw in chapter’s 2-3 seven letters to different New Testament Churches that were from the Lord Jesus Christ.  Many believe that these letters are listed in prophetic order as far as what the dominant church in the world will be like.  Those who take to this understanding have no problem with believing that we are in the Laodicean type of church at this time, and the good news is that is the last church written to.

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Murrian or animal pestilence” (Exodus 7:12).

Today’s Bible question:  “What should the Christian use to protect himself from Satan’s fiery darts?”

Answer in our next SD.

7/16/2017 7:13 AM

The Effect of the Spirit's Coming (Acts 2:5-11)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/15/2017 8:09 AM

My Worship Time                                                           Focus: The Effect of the Spirit’s Coming

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Acts 2:5-11

            Message of the verses:  “5 Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the crowd came together, and were bewildered because each one of them was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 They were amazed and astonished, saying, "Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 “And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we were born? 9  "Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10  Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the districts of Libya around Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11  Cretans and Arabs-we hear them in our own tongues speaking of the mighty deeds of God."”

            We have mentioned in earlier SD’s that the feast of Pentecost was one of three major feats that took place in Jerusalem each year and all males were required to go to these three feasts.  With that said we have to believe that there were many people in Jerusalem during this feast as we can see in verse nine the different places where they came from.

            We have to believe also that these people heard the sound of the rushing wind (rather than the sounds of the languages), as the multitude came together in the vicinity of the upper room.  It is hard for me to imagine what was going through the minds of the people as each one was hearing his own language that was being spoken.  We will see later on that the apostles were accused of being drunk and this may have been a logical conclusion since the people did not know who these men were.

            I have to believe that when God wants to get someone’s attention He certainly can do that, which is what was going on in Jerusalem almost 2000 years ago as the Holy Spirit of God began what is now known as the church, as we now live in the church age which Christ promised would happen after He returned to heaven.

            When we see the phrase “Galileans” it was not a good term for even Nathanael told Philip in John 1:45-46 “45  Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and also the Prophets wrote-Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." 46 Nathanael said to him, "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see."”

            I am not going to take the time to write about each of the places where these people came from, as this just shows me that there were many people groups there to be a part of this feast.  They were completely surprised that these supposedly ignorant Galileans were speaking in many different languages.  I believe that this was a very big shock for all who were there, but as I said God was getting their attention.

            John MacArthur writes:  “The content of these languages is identified by Luke as ‘speaking of the mighty deeds of God.’  Such rehearsal was an essential element of Jewish life and worship.  Exodus 15:11 says, ‘"Who is like You among the gods, O LORD? Who is like You, majestic in holiness, Awesome in praises, working wonders?’ (cf. Isa. 25:1).  Such praise was also a frequent theme of the book of Psalms.  Psalm 40:5 reads, ‘Many, O Lord my God, are the wonders which Thou hast done,’ while Psalm 77:11 adds, ‘I shall remember the deeds of the Lord; surely I will remember Thy wonders of old.’

            “Having used the sound of the wind to gather the crowd, the Spirit now convinces them that these believers in Jesus Christ were devoted to praising the one true God. Blasphemers, as many thought them to be, could not be extolling the greatness of God.  All that recitation of what God had done prepared the way for Peter’s proclamation of the gospel beginning in verse 14.  The good news of salvation in Jesus Christ was the climax toward which the Holy Spirit was building.”

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I am thankful for what God did when He began the church, thankful that He saved me, and thankful that I can read in His Word how this all began.  Later on we will see that 3000 people came to know the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord and the church age was off and running.  God fulfilled His plans in beginning the church age and I am thankful that He saved me to be a part of His flock.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  I have to trust the Lord to work out some things that are a problem for me at this time that He will work them out for my good, and for His glory.

 Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “All were minor prophets.”

Today’s Bible Question:  “What was the fifth plague that God placed on Egypt?

Answer in our next SD.

7/15/2017 8:44 AM

PT-5 "The Evidence of the Spirit's Coming" (Acts 2:1-4)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/14/2017 8:27 AM

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  PT-5 "The Evidence of the Spirit’s Coming"

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Acts 2:1-4

            Message of the verses:  “1 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.”

            In our last SD I stated that I was going to quote the last five paragraphs from John MacArthur’s commentary on the subject of tongues.

            “That the true biblical gift of languages no longer exists is clear from the following lines of evidence.  First, it was a miraculous gift, and the age of miracles ended with the passing of the apostles (Heb. 2:3-4).  It is significant that outside of Acts the miraculous gifts of the Spirit are mentioned only in the early epistle of 1 Corinthians.  Later epistles, such as Ephesians, Romans, and 1 Peter, discuss spiritual gifts but make no mention of miraculous ones.

            “Contrary to much teaching today, the purpose of the gift of languages was not the edification of believers.  As noted above, they were a sign of judgment to unbelieving Israel (1 Cor. 1421-22), showing that the church would encompass people from all nations and languages.  The gift of languages was therefore a sign of the transition between the Old and New Covenants—a transition completed nearly two thousand years ago.

            “Having thus fulfilled its purpose, the gift of languages passed from the scene, just as 1 Corinthians 13:8 said it would.  That fact is confirmed by church history.  Speaking in tongues was unknown from the close of the apostolic era until the beginning of this century, (1900’s) except in heretical groups.

            “Those spoke the languages at Pentecost did not have to be taught how to do so by reading a book, attending a seminar, or being coached by other people.  Nor did they have to develop the gift through repeated practice on their own.  Rather, they spoke ‘as the Spirit was giving them utterance.’  He was in total control of the situation.  They simply received what He gave.

            “The evidence of the Spirit’s coming was unmistakable.  He manifested His presence to the ears, eyes, and mouths of the believers.  But it didn’t stop there. His coming had a profound effect on the people of Jerusalem as well.”  We will begin to look at that subject in our next SD.

Answer to yesterday’s question:  “Mephibosheth” (2 Samuel 4:4).

Today’s Bible question:  “What did Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi have in common?”

Answer in our next SD

7/14/2017 8:44 AM