"The Cross and the Spirit"

 

"Brothers, what shall we do?"

"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."

 

            When we tell others of an experience we have had, we can describe it as a series of events – what we did – or we can describe it in terms of relationships – how we fit into the lives of people we encountered. So, for instance, we have been missing here for the past two weekends, because we have been off tending to family matters. We could explain our time away in terms of what we did: We went to a retirement party in Seattle for my brother and we went to a graduation in Kansas for Kathy's nephew, and then there were a whole cluster of events around the main events.

            But we could also explain what we did in terms of the relationships in the family. As I spent time in my 93-year-old mother's apartment shredding papers, cleaning the refrigerator, carrying out the recycling, I wondered just what my role is now in her life. When we visited our son in Bremerton, I wondered what I could now do as his father to help him, in the midst of all his responsibilities. I wondered at some family gatherings with my brother's growing family, with these little children running around, just how I fit into their lives, appearing as I do about once a year. And the same issues are there for my relationship to Kathy's family, it is just at a different stage. In this time of college and graduations and the busy life for all, how do we make our visits count? Kathy spent a couple of extra days there mainly visiting elderly aunts and relatives who are now in nursing homes. To me, these trips we took were much more about relationships than they were about the particular events.

            So in Acts, we have a description of an event, the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, accompanied with tongues of fire, strong wind and the babble of many languages. It was a unique event, hard to grasp just what it was like. It says that the people who witnessed it were perplexed and amazed. So Peter stood up to explain it to them. But he explains it by talking about relationships and not by focusing on the meaning of the events themselves. In other words, he does not say, "Well, the fire means this and the wind means this and the different languages mean that."

            Rather he talks about the relationships. So he begins his explanation in the prophet Joel. You do not normally go to the prophet Joel for clarity. It is not like finding the answer to a question on Google. So, we wanted to know about Pentecost and the meaning of the wind and flames, and all of a sudden we are in the midst of the moon turning to blood and the sun turning to darkness (verses 19-21). It does not seem like Peter is helping the event of Pentecost become clearer or more understandable. But Peter is talking about relationships. So he begins by focusing on our relationship to God's time and God's plan. It is God who sets the boundaries in our lives. We are in relationship to the God of salvation, to the God who grants visions and dreams and prophecies, so that in the midst of the confusion of life we might see the Savior.

            Peter speaks to a perplexed people. They are perplexed because they did not understand the events of Pentecost that they had just witnessed. They are also perplexed because they had crucified the Messiah and they did not understand what they had done. They were trying to move on in life without facing the reality of their sin.

            So Peter begins with Joel. "In the last days." That is a measurement of time and of life, the last days. It has a beginning marked by visions and prophecies. Ajith Fernando writes, "Jews believed the Spirit of prophecy had vanished from Israel, but they expected that with the coming of the Messianic age there would be an outpouring of God's Spirit, and prophecy would flourish again." The Last Days also have an ending, verses 19-21, a conclusion of earthly life marked by great cosmic signs. The point is that for those who live in his time of the Last Days between Pentecost and the end, there is salvation, for "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."

            In Peter's sermon, the central relationship during the last days is that between Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Michael Green writes, "The gift of the Spirit, promised to the people of God in the end time, depends upon the Messiah accomplishing his mission. Until he had died for man's forgiveness, until God had raised him from the dead by way of vindication, the Spirit which rested upon him was not available to be passed on to others."

            So Peter turns his attention to Jesus. First, "Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs." The miracles of Jesus were done in dependence upon the Spirit. This began at the baptism of Jesus.There he received the Holy Spirit, coming down as a dove.

Then, Luke 4:1, "Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness." The Spirit was with Jesus through his time of temptation. Chapter 4:14: "Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit." And in verse 17, Jesus reads the text; "The Spirit of the Lord is on me because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor." In chapter 5 it says that one day Jesus was teaching "and the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick." It is the Holy Spirit who is with Jesus, who leads Jesus, who strengthens Jesus in time of testing, and who gives power for the miracles of healing.

            Then Peter talks about the cross. The cross is by God's deliberate plan and foreknowledge but, Peer says "you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross." The perplexed people now hear the truth that they had been avoiding.

            Was the Spirit with Jesus on the cross? As Jesus faces the temptation to call on angels to rescue him, as Jesus feels abandoned by the father, was the Spirit with him, just as he was at the temptation, to help him complete his mission of dying for the sins of the world? Does the Spirit flee along with Peter and the disciples? Surely the Spirit remains with Jesus as he conquers sin, death and the devil on the cross.

            And God raised him from the agony of death. Death could not hold him. The word "agony" is the word for birth pangs. It means that death cannot keep the Messiah any more than a baby can be kept back when it is time to be born. Fernando writes, "Resurrection is a validation of Jesus' life and ministry. Because he is the Messiah, he cannot remain dead." The proof comes from the Old Testament, in one of David's Psalms. Here David is a prophet. He foresees one who will not be abandoned in death. "You will not abandon me to the realm of the dead; you will not let your holy one see decay."

            So, Peter says that Jesus is the Messiah. No one other than the Messiah was expected to rise from the dead. The risen Jesus must be the Messiah. And finally, he is exalted. The risen Jesus is ascended to the right hand of God, the place of power and authority. Jesus is Lord.

            The conclusion, Peter says, is that the event the people saw at Pentecost was Jesus who is both Lord and Messiah pouring out the Holy Spirit. This is the one you crucified.

            There is then a close relationship between Jesus and the Holy Spirit in the whole message of salvation. Michael Green writes, "The Spirit was active in an upsurge in prophecy at the time of Jesus' birth, he was active in the birth of John and Jesus, he rests upon Jesus during his lifetime, so that it is in the Spirit's power that Jesus carries out his mighty works. After the resurrection Jesus imparts the Spirit to all who believe in him."

            So when the people hear Peter's message, they wake up and are convicted of what they have done. This conviction in their hearts does not lead them to judgment, but to salvation. Peter calls on them to repent and be baptized, for the forgiveness of sin and the gift of the Holy Spirit.

            This message comes to you as well. What is your relationship to God the Father? Through the cross and resurrection of Jesus, by faith you can receive forgiveness of sin and the Holy Spirit to live in you. The Holy Spirit comes into your life through faith in the cross and resurrection of Jesus. It is this gift that defines your relationship to God and to each other. The invitation is to life in the Spirit, in these last days, through faith in Christ.

            On Christ, the solid rock I stand. All other ground is sinking sand.

            Amen.