Peter Preached the 1st sermon
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.
·
Peter spoke about
the Lord Jesus – His Deity, His miracles, His death, His Resurrection, His
Exaltation
Acts 2:37-41 37
When the people heard this, they were cut
to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what
shall we do?" 38 Peter replied, "Repent and be
baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the
forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are
far off--for all whom the Lord our God will call." 40 With
many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, "Save yourselves from
this corrupt generation." 41 Those who accepted his message
were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.
·
Last week we looked
at how we as a church must Love People, Meet Needs, Teach Truth...
·
Teaching Truth
brings us to Peter’s first sermon, the very first message...
Like the Early Church...
1.
We Must
Hear the Gospel. (God’s
Word)
V37 “When the people heard this...”
Acts 2:36 "Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God
has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."
·
He is the Messiah,
God in the flesh and you crucified Him – But Jehovah God raised Him to LIFE!
Romans 10:17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the
word of God. NKJV
·
A church must be
engaged in teaching and communicating God’s Word... It’s Powerful
Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is full of living power.
It is sharper than the sharpest knife, cutting deep into our innermost thoughts
and desires. It exposes us for what we really are.
NLT
God’s warns about false teachers
and His Word...
Jeremiah 23:28-32 28
Let these false prophets tell their dreams, but
let my true messengers faithfully proclaim my every word. There is a
difference between chaff and wheat! 29 Does not my word burn
like fire?" asks the LORD. "Is it not like a mighty hammer that smashes rock to
pieces? 30 "Therefore," says the LORD, "I stand
against these prophets who get their messages from each other— 31
these smooth-tongued prophets who say, `This prophecy is from the LORD!'
32 Their imaginary dreams are flagrant lies that lead my people
into sin. I did not send or appoint them, and they have no message at all for my
people," says the LORD.
·
We must preach and
hear the Gospel message – the death, burial, resurrection of Jesus Christ.
·
Jesus Christ was
fully God and fully man – who died for the sins of the world (1Co 15:1-4)
·
You cannot go to
heaven with your sin... sin must be dealt with through Jesus’ sacrificial death
2.
God Must
Bring Conviction. (Holy
Spirit)
“...they were cut to the heart...”
·
“Conviction” is a
law term that means “being found guilty”... being persuaded or convinced
·
Being condemned as a
sinner in view of God’s law... a painful sense of exposure to God’s wrath
·
Notice they were
“cut to the heart” – to stab, to pierce, to strike, to prick violently...
·
God Almighty
speaking to you individually, bringing deep heart conviction, guilty before Holy
God.
·
Will I know when God
speaks to me? When God is calling you to salvation you WILL know it!
·
Henry Blackaby says
when God speaks: 1.) Usually unique to you. 2.) Sure God was speaking 3.)
Know what God said 4.) that was the encounter with God
·
These people wo
heard Peter’s sermon were “cut to the heart” – the manifest presence of God!
John 16:8-9 And
when he (Holy Spirit) comes, he will convince the world of its sin, and of
God's righteousness, and of the coming judgment. 9 The
world's sin is unbelief in me. 10 Righteousness is
available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more.
11 Judgment will come because the prince of this world has
already been judged. NLT
·
The Holy Spirit convinces,
convicts us of sin (unbelief), righteousness & coming judgment.
·
The Lord tells us we are DEAD in
our trespasses and sins (Eph 2:1) – no spark of goodness.
·
We’re sinners... God is Holy &
Righteous... there is a judgment to come – are you ready?
·
I don’t give frequent
invitations...If God is working you’ll get saved here or at home or elsewhere
·
God calls me to preach the truth
of His Word – then the Holy Spirit of God produces conviction
·
I sow the seed, but it’s God who
produces life and change, Christlike character within us.
You may be saying “my life is a mess” anger,
marital / family problems, little peace or joy... yet you may have gone to
church since a child... you may have thought you got saved years ago... yet the
reality of your life shows more the FRUIT of the sinful nature (Gal 5:19-21)
then the FRUIT of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23) in your life... possibly a goat and
not a sheep (shake in fear) – Today, God may be calling you to get truly saved!
·
A person does not get saved when
manipulated by a preacher or forced into saying sinners prayer
Disciple Making or Confrontational? One centers
around an ongoing lifestyle change learning Truth, while the other centers
around a point in time. A survey conducted found 70% ACTIVE growing Christians
were “won” to Christ in a relational process. Contrasted to 13% ACTIVE growing
Christians were “won” by confrontational / persuasive process. In a
manipulative approach the “drop out” rate is almost 9 in 10 individuals (87%)!
·
This helps explain why churches
are “filled” with unsaved and or carnal Christians.
·
God the Holy Spirit MUST call you
to Himself... it is not a sign on the dotted line salvation!
·
A person doesn’t get saved when
THEY want to BUT only in a right response as God convicts.
John 6:44 "No
one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise
him up at the last day.
·
God produces deep in your heart
conviction, which is GOOD - Almighty God speaking to me!
·
People often tell me how they
sense the manifest presence of God here at Cross Creek...
·
This is precious, humbling and
powerful... that is why we are seeing so many lives changed!
·
Easter we set a record attendance
of 400 people! Why? God is working in our midst!
·
Seek Him while He may be found...
call on Him while He is near!
Isaiah 55:6
Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is
near.
·
Listen carefully – when God speaks
to your heart, you must respond correctly – Where you spend eternity is in the
balance...
Hebrews 3:7-8a
So, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you hear
his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts...
Two Responses to Conviction...
Ø
Reject
God’s Call – You say NO.
§
Burdened with sin. –
Feelings of heaviness, with guilt, regret, NO peace, Fear, etc.
§
Defensive / Critical
Attitude. – I don’t like that preacher, church, the people... (self is your god)
§
Calloused and
hardened heart. – We can become immune in hearing God... downward spiral
Acts 28:26-27
“Go to this people and say, "You will be ever hearing
but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. ‘For
this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their
ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see
with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn,
and I would heal them.'
John 3:36
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son
will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him."
Ø
Accept
God’s Call – You Say YES!
§
Forgiven of your
sin! – What peace, assurance, freedom, Liberty, huge weight lifted!
§
Indwelt by the Holy
Spirit! – Our comforter, leads us, protects us, seals us, teaches us, etc.
§
Blessed beyond
measure now & forever! – Purpose for life, joyous hope, be with Jesus!
Acts 3:19
Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times
of refreshing may come from the Lord,
§
Accept God’s call
and say YES... sins
wiped out & Awesome times of refreshing come
John 1:12
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the
right to become children of God—
3.
Supernaturally
Changed Forever!
(Regeneration – Titus 3:5)
Acts 2:41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and
about three thousand were added to their number that day.
·
Look at the supernatural response of the people – 3000 souls
saved, converted, changed!
·
When you say YES – God wonderfully comes into your life!
Changing you forever!
·
Like in the early church many of us here at Cross Creek have
been spiritually changed forever!
John 5:24 "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes
him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has
crossed over from death to life.
·
Have you heard God’s Word? Have
you Accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior?
·
Have you crossed over from DEATH
TO LIFE? Early church 3000 saved... even today
The same Gospel message the early church
preached... Must be preached today!
Special Invitation –
Have you crossed over from death to life?
Are you 100% sure of your salvation?
Is the Spirit of God tugging upon your heart?
How will you respond? SAY YES to God.
May 7th – Church part 3
May 14th – Church part 4 - The Da Vinci Code
Exposed
Let’s Pray
Messages
