“Acts 2: The Beginning of the Church”

Monday, January 02, 2017

Acts 2 has been referred to as “the birthday” of the church.

It was the first day of the week, the day Jesus rose from the grave. The apostle John would later call the first day of the week, “the Lord’s Day” (Revelation 1:10).  It was to be a special day in the New Testament system as it became the day that God’s people around the world would assemble to remember their Savior’s death on the cross of Calvary.

It was also Pentecost, the Jewish celebration of the harvest. Pentecost was one of three annual feasts of the Old Testament which required all Jewish males to travel to Jerusalem for its observance. Due to the difficult travel conditions of the day, many, perhaps most, of them would simply remain in Jerusalem for the fifty day interval between Passover and Pentecost.

The first few verses describe the fulfillment of the prophecy of the apostles’ baptism in the Holy Spirit (Matthew 3:11; Luke 3:16). This is what Jesus meant when He told the apostles that they would receive power from God (Acts 1:8) that would confirm them as spokesmen for the Father (Hebrews 2:4).

In verses 14-36, Peter preaches the first gospel sermon and includes the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. After quoting three Old Testament passages (Joel 2:28-32; Psalm 16:6-11; Psalm 110:1), he shows Jesus to be the fulfillment of all the Messianic prophecies. Declaring Jesus to be both Lord and Christ, he then accuses them of the sin of having crucified the Son of God. Cut to the heart, they ask what to do to be forgiven and he tells them to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus. Three thousand souls respond in obedience and are added to the new church by the Lord.

Acts 2 has also been called “the hub of the Bible.” Everything prior to Acts 2 points to the establishment of the church/kingdom. Everything after Acts 2 points back to this chapter as “the beginning.”

--Roger Hillis

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