Grace Lutheran Church Weekly Devotion - Acts 2:14a, 22–36
Acts 2:14a, 22–36.
14Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them, . . .
22“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. 25For David says concerning him, “‘I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken; 26therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope. 27For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption.
28You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’
29“Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, 31he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. 32This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. 33Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. 34For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, “‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, 35until I make your enemies your footstool.’ 36Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
Preaching to the large gathering in Jerusalem, Peter emphasizes how God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit work together to bring about our salvation. His message makes it plain that Christ was sent by God the Father and that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Messianic promise. Through his Pentecost sermon, Peter shows the significance of Jesus the Christ. For the crowd gathered in Jerusalem that day, they were seeing the fulfillment of God’s promise to pour out His Spirit on His people in the age of the Messiah. This outpouring is God’s proof that Jesus is both Lord and Messiah. All of this means that all believers now have all the blessings David had proclaimed in Psalm 16 (cf. verses 25-28).
What does it mean for us that Jesus is Lord and Christ? The answer is simple; it means the very same thing for you and me as it did for King David and Peter. Since Jesus is our Lord and Christ, He is beside us, so our faith does not need to be shaken (25) by all the hardships we encounter in life. Whether it is from illness, destruction, loss of finances, or anything else in heaven or on earth. Even when the “valley of the shadow” closes in on us, we can experience joy and hope because we have confidence in God’s Christ and the certainty that He will not abandon us. Today, know for sure and certain that since you are united to Jesus in Holy Baptism and since God did not abandon Him in the grave but raised Him from the dead, He will not leave you in death or eternity (cf. 26-27). St. Peter proclaims in his Pentecost sermon, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit work together to accomplish their common will: our salvation. And the better we understand and appreciate this great truth, the more we will be inclined to sing, “Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heavenly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.” Let all God’s children say: Amen!
825 North 1st West
Cheyenne Wells, CO, 80810-0728
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