Pierced To The Heart

At Pentecost, Peter and the other apostles to the Church were filled with the Holy Spirit as they delivered God's message to those who were gathered and listening.

Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.” And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!” So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand souls. They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved. Acts 2:37-47

God's Word does the work. Exposure to God's Word, delivered in the power of the Holy Spirit, can make the human soul aware that he is in desperate need of a savior. At Pentecost that Word was delivered orally, miraculously, by newly empowered believers speaking languages they had not learned. The New Testament Canon was yet to be written and translated, but God had other means of getting the people's attention and convicting their souls.

Isaiah 55:11-So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. 

Hebrews 4:12-For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

The hearers of Peter's sermon were pierced, indeed. "OK, men, we've heard your message and we realize Jesus is the Messiah and we are responsible for His death. What can we do?"

Answer: Repent. (Greek: metanoeo. Think differently. Reconsider.) That means change your attitude about Jesus Christ and God's plan. About, face! You did not believe before; believe now. Reorient to truth. That is repentance and repentance brings forgiveness of your sins. You will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, making you a member of the Body of Christ--His Church. In Him forever. Openly declare your new position by being baptized in the name of Jesus, publicly identifying your self with Him. This applies to you and your children and everyone everywhere who listens to God's call through His Word. There is no reason to remain trapped in legalism. Salvation has been provided by God's grace.

Three thousand of those souls were added to the Church that day. They received baptism. They stayed with the apostles, to learn from them, fellowship with them, pray with them and share together their possessions and foodstuffs. Most of these people were pilgrims, remember, who had traveled there to celebrate the great feasts in Jerusalem. Now that they had entered a new life, their priority was to learn as much as they could about this life and the Author of it before going back to whatever place and occupations they came from. This was a time of great excitement, as they continued to meet and worship and learn and evangelize. More were saved each day, as this wave of Holy Spirit awakening continued. It would be hard to tear oneself away from such momentous happenings. One might rather sell his stuff and stay around for a while, soaking up the glory. And when they did go back to their own cities, they went back as born-again believers in Jesus Christ, having a magnificent testimony to share with the folks back home.

This is how the gospel spread in the newborn Church.

Like fire.

First Message of The Church

It was the day of Pentecost. The day Jesus' Church was born. The believers in Jesus had just received the baptism of the Holy Spirit, which identified them permanently with Jesus Himself and gave them supernatural abilities they didn't expect. One manifestation of the Holy Spirit was to speak the gospel in languages they'd never learned. The Jews who were assembled there heard and understood what the men were saying and were astounded. Some claimed they must be drunk.

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. For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day; but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel:

‘AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS,’ God says, ‘THAT I WILL POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT ON ALL MANKIND; AND YOUR SONS AND YOUR DAUGHTERS SHALL PROPHESY, AND YOUR YOUNG MEN SHALL SEE VISIONS, AND YOUR OLD MEN SHALL DREAM DREAMS; EVEN ON MY BONDSLAVES, BOTH MEN AND WOMEN, I WILL IN THOSE DAYS POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT And they shall prophesy. ‘AND I WILL GRANT WONDERS IN THE SKY ABOVE AND SIGNS ON THE EARTH BELOW, BLOOD, AND FIRE, AND VAPOR OF SMOKE. ‘THE SUN WILL BE TURNED INTO DARKNESS AND THE MOON INTO BLOOD, BEFORE THE GREAT AND GLORIOUS DAY OF THE LORD SHALL COME. ‘AND IT SHALL BE THAT EVERYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.’

“Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know—this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power. For David says of Him,

‘I SAW THE LORD ALWAYS IN MY PRESENCE; FOR HE IS AT MY RIGHT HAND, SO THAT I WILL NOT BE SHAKEN. ‘THEREFORE MY HEART WAS GLAD AND MY TONGUE EXULTED; MOREOVER MY FLESH ALSO WILL LIVE IN HOPE; BECAUSE YOU WILL NOT ABANDON MY SOUL TO HADES, NOR ALLOW YOUR HOLY ONE TO UNDERGO DECAY. ‘YOU HAVE MADE KNOWN TO ME THE WAYS OF LIFE; YOU WILL MAKE ME FULL OF GLADNESS WITH YOUR PRESENCE.’

"Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. And so, because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to  him with an oath to seat one of his descendants on his throne, he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay. This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear. For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says:

‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET.”’

Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.” Acts 2:14-36

God is one in essence, three in personality. God the Father is unseen. He is spirit only. The Father made the plan in eternity past. God the Son became flesh to live among us and redeem us. He executed the plan of creation and redemption. God the Holy Spirit is also unseen, but sometimes felt. He has various functions throughout history. He participated in the creation, the Old Testament manifestations of God to His people, the prophesies of the Messiah and future things. He enabled individual believers in Old Testament times for whatever special work they were appointed to perform. That was temporary enablement in the dispensation of Israel and before, but now comes the Church Age, in which all believers are universally indwelt by God, the Holy Spirit. He, the Holy Spirit, is the person Who convicts us of our need for a savior. He opens our understanding so we can receive the Savior's atonement. He brings us to a comprehension of the finished Work of Christ on our behalf. Then, when we believe and receive Jesus Christ, He fills and permanently indwells us, baptizing us into Christ's Body forever. That's how we become Children of God, made in His likeness, positive to His teaching and useful soldiers in the Angelic Conflict.

The Day of Pentecost was the initiation into the Church of all born-again believers in Jesus Christ. It was a mass baptism in Himself of all present there who had previously believed and had been symbolically baptized in water. Peter had to explain to the thousands in attendance what was going on. No, we're not drunk at 9 am, people. What you are seeing and hearing is fulfillment of prophecy. This is a manifestation of the Spirit Who will also produce the phenomena prophesied in Joel 2:28-32 regarding the last days. You know that prophesy as a work of the Spirit, so you should recognize this as such. Peter was speaking to Jews. They had been raised in the Old Testament scriptures. They were all familiar with the prophecies concerning God's fulfillment of His promises to Abraham, in what we call the millennial reign of Christ. A lot must happen before the Jews can realize that fulfillment. Peter told them this was the beginning of those things that must happen first. It was all in the "predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God."

Then Peter referred to the miracles and signs that many of these same people had witnessed in the ministry of Jesus, Whom the Father had sent and Who had been nailed to a cross to appease these very people. Yes, He died, but death could not hold Him. Peter quoted David's Psalm 16:8-11, citing God's promise not to abandon the Christ to the grave or allow His body to decompose. Pointing out that David's body IS dead, and still in the grave, Peter states that this promise could only be about Jesus, descendant of David and Lamb of God. He's at the Father's right hand, now, and has sent God, the Holy Spirit to continue the work of redemption in the earth. That work will be accomplished through the Body of Christ--His Church.

Know this, Israel: God has made Him both Lord and Christ--this Jesus whom you crucified.

Peter and the other apostles had, like Abraham, left family and home to go with Jesus into the unknown, just because they believed in Him. They spent three years in close company with the Messiah as He presented Himself to Israel. They had witnessed his arrest and crucifixion. They had seen the empty tomb; had visited and shared meals with the risen Lord. Since the resurrection they had had six weeks of doctrinal training by Jesus, Himself. And now, at last, the power has descended. Now they can see what this whole experience has been about, to which they were appointed. Now they can articulate God's plan to any Jew in whatever language he speaks! They can do that now, because they are a NEW SPECIES. Not Jew, not Gentile----CHURCH. The one for whom our Lord endured the shame of the cross.

The brand-new Church would have much more to do and to teach in those intense first years of existence. They still could not know what sorrows and joys lay before them, but they were supremely equipped to evangelize, baptize, train and teach those who would be born into this new species. Those first miraculous sign gifts would phase out as the canon of Scripture was completed; during the lifetime of the apostles. The work continues, though, with perhaps quieter, but just as profound miracles in the daily lives of all who name the Name of Jesus, as we await His glorious return.

Language to Which We Were Born

After the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave, He spent some time with His apostles and other believers, demonstrating to them His living body, teaching them important truths and preparing them for the huge transition that would take place in them when He had departed into heaven.

So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” 

And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.” Acts 1:6-11

Jesus' disciples didn't understand about the Church. They were still expecting the glorious kingdom, and thrones. Not yet. There is much, much more to be done. More to learn, and they were about to be equipped for that new knowledge. Jesus wouldn't talk timetables with them. Only the Father has that information. "You will receive power" to do the work of evangelizing the world, and here it is again: "you shall be My witnesses." This is not a command. It is a statement of fact. They will be. It is a certain occupation of their immediate and lifetime future. They are changed people. They are about to experience an even more dramatic and permanent change. There is a new and wonderful creation they are part of, and are about to take leadership in. They have become children of God by faith in Christ Jesus and there is no going back.

The transition will begin right here in Jerusalem, the center of all God's dealings with His people. Then it will spread throughout Judea and Samaria, and then into all the earth. Those Galileans standing there were to be the agents of this marvellous work, because of Whose they were.

Then He was taken up, out of their sight, into heaven. They stood there, mesmerized, gazing upward. Two angels stood by and told them to get on about their business. "THIS Jesus," not another, will return someday in just THIS SAME WAY. That is our assurance, when we hear about mysterious men here or there who claim, or whom others claim to be the Messiah. No. When He returns, it will be in this same manner as His disciples saw Him go. And no one knows when that will be, but the Father.

A few weeks passed, and they waited, as the Lord had instructed them to do.

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

Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven. 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. They were amazed and astonished, saying, “Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we were born? Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the districts of Libya around Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—we hear them in our own tongues speaking of the mighty deeds of God.” And they all continued in amazement and great perplexity, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others were mocking and saying, “They are full of sweet wine.” Acts 2:1-12

Pentecost: Pent means 50. This is the fourth of the annual feasts of the Jews. It comes 50 days after the Feast of Firstfruits, which is the first Sabbath of Passover. These feasts were important symbolism for the Jews, and intricately timed to commemorate special events in the history of Israel (past and future). The symbolism was heavily Messianic, designed to keep them reminded of the Savior Who was promised of God to His people. Pentecost is an early harvest feast, also called the Feast of Weeks. As we see in this passage, thousands of devout Jews from all parts of the world assembled in Jerusalem to celebrate these feasts. God's timing is perfect.

The believers were still gathered and waiting, when it happened! Sound of rushing, mighty wind. Tongues of fire resting on each one. When they opened their mouths to speak, what came out were "other" languages and dialects that these men had not learned. Not language unknown to humanity, but known languages, in common usage, but which these individuals did not, themselves, know. The Spirit was giving them utterance. The Babel phenomenon was reversed.

Isaiah had prophesied of this sign to the Jews in Isaiah 28:11-12. It was a sign that Israel would soon suffer national discipline for their unbelief: Indeed, He will speak to this people Through stammering lips and a foreign tongue, He who said to them, “Here is rest, give rest to the weary,” And, “Here is repose,” but they would not listen. "This people:" Israel. "Stammering, foreign tongue:" Gentile languages. Israel, the people of God, the keeper of the Word of God, who took great pride in their beautiful Hebrew language, were to be evangelized in guttural, Gentile languages! Why? Because they had not done their job. Now these uneducated Galileans would do the job, because the Holy Spirit empowered them with abilities they did not naturally have, to distribute His Gospel to Jews from all over the inhabited world.

The Galileans just opened their mouths and spoke the gospel message. The Jews and proselytes assembled there were from at least 16 (count 'em) different nations. Their families had migrated there, and these Jews had grown up speaking the languages of the nations in which they were born. And each was hearing the message in his own language! God, the Holy Spirit was putting His Gospel on the fast track, with as much mass distribution as was possible at that time and place.

The target audience heard it. Most of them were greatly impressed and wanted to know more. Some were skeptical, and as is typical of unbelievers, they made ridiculous accusations of drunkenness; as if being drunk would give an uneducated Galilean the ability to speak fluent Italian.

God's plan is perfect. God's provision is perfect. God's timing is perfect. The Day of Pentecost was the birthday of the Church; an organism who embodies the Spirit of Jesus Christ on the earth until His return in glory to claim His own.

New Dispensation

I began sharing my study through the Gospel of John exactly one year ago. I commented at the time that I couldn't know if I'd ever finish that study, because I knew it would be lengthier than most I've blogged about. That is not to be morbid, just a fact of human life. We are not promised tomorrow, so we must keep in mind when a project is started, it could be left unfinished. Well, we got John finished last week. I loved every word of it, even more than the studies I've done in John before. Such is the nature of spiritual growth. The things of God come clearer with time and experience as we walk with the Lord.

The following is a repost of a study from May of 2012, titled Apostles. It seems fitting to share it again here, as we have just seen John's account of the life of our Lord, His death, burial and resurrection. All of that happened in the Age of Israel. With the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, a new dispensation came into being: the Church Age. That's ours. 

In studying the last incarnate hours of our Lord in John chapters 13-17, I was struck by the intense intimacy of Jesus with His men. They were first called disciples (students), when He called them away from their nets, tax tables and even political zealotry. The eleven had been positive to the reality of God and His Word, as best they could comprehend it under the religious system of their day. Some had been disciples of John the Baptist, and had heard him warn Israel to prepare the way for the Messiah. They willingly, perhaps eagerly followed that Messiah, when they knew Who He was, and they learned from Him as He ministered among His people, Israel. He, and they, preached and performed miraculous works among those people for 3 years. Those people who came to Him believing were saved—He told them so—and some were physically healed--but many simply followed and watched with contempt, despising His grace, because it conflicted with their religion of works and threatened their power base.

Those original twelve, one of whom was a fraud, were appointed as apostles (Greek: apostolos—ambassador, messenger, he that is sent) to Israel. These appointments were sovereignly decided by Jesus. There was no merit involved. The apostles were commissioned by the Messiah to do specific work, among a specific people for a specific period of time. He qualifies the called.

Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.

These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;  Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’  Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give. Matthew 10:1-8

After Judas was dismissed at the last Passover, Jesus spent the next several hours teaching the eleven about His love for them and the love He expected them to have for each other. He was clearly announcing a shift in the program. God’s policy never changes. The Policy is always grace. The program, however, changed with the finished atonement of His Son. Now all the laws, rituals and feasts of the Old Testament teachings were fulfilled. The prophecies about the coming Messiah were fulfilled. In the new dispensation God’s Word is still the final authority, and identification with God and His Word is the believers’ security. We now would have a supernatural helper indwelling us; the Holy Spirit. We now have a personal High Priest, Jesus Christ. Those who rejected Jesus had not known the Father or comprehended His Word. If they had, they would have received His Son.

Fast-forward to the post-ascension action of Peter and the other apostles, in preparing to lead the brand new baby Church; they held an election to replace the deceased Judas—apostle number 12. Matthias was elected (Acts 1:26). He was probably a trustworthy and honorable disciple, but apparently not appointed by Jesus. There is no more information about Matthias in the Bible.

Jesus did make a twelfth appointment, on the road to Damascus some time later, when He interrupted Saul of Tarsus on his cruel mission to imprison and kill Christians. A criterion for apostleship was to have been an eyewitness to the risen Christ. 

I Corinthians 15:5-9 “…he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve.  After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.

For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.”

I Corinthians 9:1 “...Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not the result of my work in the Lord?^”

Galatians 1:15-18 “But when God, who set me apart from my mother’s womb and called me by his grace, was pleased  to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, my immediate response was not to consult any human being. I did not go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went into Arabia. Later I returned to Damascus.

Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Cephas and stayed with him fifteen days.”

Three years. That period of time alone with Jesus intrigues me, because it is roughly the same length of time the original disciples/apostles spent closely studying Jesus. This cannot be coincidence. Paul became the twelfth apostle; the one assigned to evangelize and teach the Gentiles, and the writer of 13 of the 27 New Testament books. His writings are the most intricately detailed, deeply doctrinal of all the New Testament writings, except for Hebrews, whose author is unknown.

In the early Church, apostleship was a spiritual gift (I Corinthians 12:28) which carried authority over the churches until the canon of scripture was completed, with the writing of Revelation. The absolute authority over the Church now is the canon of the New Testament, which was written by apostles and close associates of apostles to the Church. There is no legitimate office of apostleship today. They served their purpose and left us the equipment we need to continue.

Jesus’ public ministry to Israel set forth God’s policies for His coming kingdom. The Messiah and His kingdom were rejected by those to whom He was sent: Israel. This did not take Jesus by surprise.
Nevertheless, He fulfilled His responsibility to that people and then, after making propitiation for them and the whole world, He commissioned His Church; His spiritual body in the world, to continue His work until He returns for us. He didn’t leave us orphans; He sent His Holy Spirit to enable us for that work.

So we’ll work…’til Jesus comes…and we’ll be gathered home.