Ep. 271. Acts 2 | The Holy Spirit

EPISODE 271

THE HOLY SPIRIT: ACTS 2

So many things about this chapter are really cool to me. I love that the giving of the Spirit and the "about 3000 saved" correspond to the Feast of the First Fruits. I also love the juxtaposition of the "about 3000 saved" when the Spirit was given and the "about 3000 dead" when the Law was given. That the Law brought death and that the Spirit brought life is a theme featured heavily in the New Testament.

Peter shows his mastery of the Scripture, in his case, the Old Testament, by the various references he makes in his first sermon. Of course, this was an important thing for him to do because his audience, though from all over the world, was primarily Jewish. They would have understood and recognized these Scriptures immediately. With the somewhat lengthy quotation of Joel, Peter shows how the promised Spirit of God had now been given to the people to prophesy, see visions, and dream dreams. He concludes the quote from Joel with, "Everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Paul will use this same line in Romans and in a Jewish context, though we know that salvation is for the Gentiles, too.

Don't miss that Jesus was "delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God." This had always been God's plan for redemption. Jesus was not a backup plan to put right what man had broken. The promise of a savior who would crush Satan and sin underfoot goes all the way back to Genesis three and clearly comes millennia before the Law.

As a bonus, I love that Peter refers to David as a prophet here.

ADDITIONAL READING: Joel 2:28-31; John 5:36-37; Romans 10:13; Luke 22:53; Psalm 16:8-11; Psalm 110; 2 Corinthians 3:6-11; Exodus 32:28