Sermon Tone Analysis

Ahhhhh His First Words

Acts 2:14-21 \\ Secular: We all undertake many ventures believing in the outcome.

We demonstrate tenacity… stick-to-it-ness.

We demonstrate ingenuity… craftiness, out-of-the-box thinking… and we can put an incredible amount of effort in… we can even have a noble motive…

* As we watch this clip we need to recognize that one key thing is missing from this extraordinary effort…

* */<CLIP> 1:16 – 6:05 A Grand Day Out/*

* Well did anyone pick out the one key element that was missing…?

* No matter how noble the task, how ingenious the tactics, how much effort we invest… if our effort is based on something that is not true… there is little or no chance of completing the task, reaching the desired goal… no truth… no success… mission aborted!

Biblical:

 Acts 2:14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say.

15 These men are not drunk, as you suppose.

It's only nine in the morning!

16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

 17 "'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.

18 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.

19 I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke.

20 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.

21 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'

Personal:

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Bridge:

* Churches engage all kinds of programs and approaches to reach people

* Small Groups

* Drama… contemporary music

* Advertising services or programs

* Sponsoring seminars…

* They are not necessarily harmful

* But we need to remember the priority of communicating the Word!

 

* Best summed up in Paul’s words…NIV 1 Corinthians 1:17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel-- not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

18 For the message 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; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate."

20 Where is the wise man?

Where is the scholar?

Where is the philosopher 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 know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.

22 Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.

*The whole of the Reformation (church shake-up… like a corporate shake-up re:focus on core values and mission) -- - -to bring the Truth and Power of God’s Word back into its role of centrality in the Church.

Strip away the baggage Rome had attached to the message… (programs, people, penance…).

Our Understanding of God, the role of the Father, the need of a Saviour, the comfort of the Spirit, the absolute divinity that inspires us to worship, to praise, to pray, the command to love our neighbours….

Are all rooted in God revelation… and we need to make the communication of the message a central function of the church….

Whether you are sharing the God’s News with our neighbour or I’m preparing to share God’s Word with you… this is how we know who we are in Christ… how we know who we were and who we know are before God… this gives us every reason to live life in the Spirit and come and worship….

To surrender all to God.

Ahhh Glorious day when Peter Spoke his first message… to the New Church… a legacy of preaching the in church… messages of hope and light, understanding and truth, of a Saviour and salvation….

Preach it Peter… preach it…*

We are going to look at the first part of his first sermon today…

It looks to refute the nay Sayers… those who challenged the Something Supernatural that happened in the first part of Chapter 2 (speaking in Foreign languages, rushing wind and tongues of fire

Body:

The Response:

Acts 2:14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say.

15 These men are not drunk, as you suppose.

It's only nine in the morning!

* Peter was the acknowledged leader of the group at this point…

* Matt 10:2-4, Mark 3:16-19, Luke 6:14-16, Acts 1:13 all list Peter first… (not without meaning in the Greek~/Jewish setting)

* The eleven including Matthias stood with him… witness to the resurrection… standing on conviction…

*  Raised his voice… no timidity…

* Semitic Expression “/let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say/” Words of a teacher, Rabbi… confidence and boldness

* let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say

*  [Be this known ...] 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, Prov 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 asks you a reason of the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear."

(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database.

Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

* Obviously the Spirit-filled Peter was a very different man than the one who cringed at the questioning of a servant girl when he denied Christ three times… instead he was prepared to…

* Challenged the “popular view”

* Ready to stand and defend truth…

* Our fear should be….

Just as Wallace and Grommit were ready willing and able… just as the world is often ready to create systems, structures to reinforce it view of the truth…

*  Have you seen how passionately the world attempt to keep Intelligent Design theory out of the schools.

* How craftily the government has taken your tax money and to pay for abortions

*  How persistently the College of BC Teachers attempted to keep TWU grads out of the school system

* Peter upheld truth

* He didn’t waiver at the challenges

* We need to stand up for truth and be bold…

* It doesn’t matter what you think is true…

* The moon isn’t made out of cheese

* It does matter what is true

* Jesus Christ either live a sinless life, was a man of noble character displaying love, dying for us… or he was not… truth has no middle ground!

* Either what Descarte said is true… I think Therefore I am or not… we can know truth

* When we know truth and when eternity hangs in the balance we have to defend it!!

* Peter not only defends but he explains…

The Explanation:

 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

 17 "'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.

18 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.

19 I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke.

20 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.

21 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'

* Peter talks of a promise in Joel… one that God fulfills here in part (an earnest)

* That promise which will be fulfilled in full in end times.

* Just as the prophets talked of Jesus the Suffering Servant… Isa 53:4 Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.

5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

* So the Old Testament lays out the promise of a Conquering King, Daniel 9:25 Psalm 45:7

*  Things will happen that challenge our understanding

* Nuclear Power

* Astro-physics