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The Converted Community
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Acts 2:14, 32–39
New International Version (NIV)
14Then 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.
32God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. 33Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, " 'The Lord said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand 35until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet." 36"Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ." 37When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?" 38Peter 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. 39The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call."
The Converted Community
The story of Pentecost boggles our minds to this day. As the Bible tells the story in Acts 2, the Holy Spirit comes and touches all of the disciples. They suddenly are able to speak in different languages. Many people, 3000 the text says, get baptized and start following Jesus that day.
The miraculous stuff of this story steals the show. It's usually what we focus on when we think of this story. But there's something more ordinary going on that we need to see. In the midst of all the hubbub, in the middle of the bold signs of God's presence, something is quietly happening that is essential to the story. Look closely.
The wind, the flames, the speaking in tongues bewilder the crowds gathered. Wouldn't you be? This stuff might scare us more than thrill us. Peter overhears some of the crowd talking. He realizes that they don't understand what is happening.
So he stood up to explain. That is no longer remarkable to those of us who have grown up in the church because we have read this text so many times. But there is something extraordinary happening here. Have you ever wondered: how could Peter stand there and preach like that after what he had done? What nerve! What gall!
How could he stand? Just before Jesus was killed, Peter promised to stick with Jesus through thick and thin. But as soon as Jesus was arrested, he told people he didn’t even know Jesus! Then Peter totally abandoned Jesus at the cross. In the back of our minds, you and I might have the story at the end of John's gospel where Jesus restores Peter by telling him to feed his sheep. But that is not the way Luke tells the story. Remember, the author Luke wrote both the gospel and the book of Acts. Luke ends his gospel with no reinstatement of Peter. There is no specific moment of forgiveness between him and Jesus. So in the gospel of Luke the question hangs in the air: how will Peter respond to Christ's death and resurrection? What will Peter do now that the crucifixion is over and Christ has been raised?
In Unbinding Your Heart, Martha Grace Reese introduces us to the “Trinity of Relationships.” After studying 150 mainline churches that are really alive and growing, she discovered something. All of these vibrant churches had a set of three relationships that were very real and healthy: (1) relationships with God (2) relationships with people outside the church, and (3) relationships with each other.
When Peter stands up to explain things to the crowd, something remarkable is happening in the Trinity of Relationships in his life. We'll briefly talk about the first two relationships. Then I want to focus on the third.
First, something remarkable happened in Peter’s relationship with God. Imagine being Peter, knowing how miserably you had failed Jesus. When Pentecost Day dawns, and the Holy Spirit comes upon all of the believers, Peter is included. He receives the power of the Spirit of the Risen Christ. Imagine his relief! Imagine his joy at the new start he receives from God!
The denial….The abandonment…The broken promises…they are all water under the bridge in Peter’s relationship with God. They are washed away, removed as far as the East from the West. Peter accepts the clean slate God gives him. How can Peter stand? He is living out his forgiveness. He is bearing the fruit of a spiritual reality. This is what a person freed by God’s love looks like: Standing boldly, proclaiming freely, sharing generously the love of God.
Peter is experiencing a whole new, fresh start given to him by God. He is living out a moment of forgiveness. The last words that the author Luke has Peter say in Luke 22 are words denying that he knows Jesus. But the words Peter says now are: “Let me tell you who Jesus is!” Peter's relationship with God has been renewed. He is living in bold joy due to the forgiveness he's received. Only if our relationship with God is renewed like this everyday will we be able to stand up and speak up when we hear confusion in someone's life. At Pentecost, something remarkable happened in Peter’s relationship with God.
Second, something remarkable happened in Peter's relationship with people outside the circle of believers. Peter is moved to his core by these people who don't know that God has sent Jesus for them. Verse 40 says Peter exhorted them. Peterson in The Message paraphrases it this way: “urging them over and over.” When you've received forgiveness like Peter, when you've gotten that kind of relief, you want to share it. This Pentecost day catapults Peter into no-holds-barred compassion for people who don't know Christ.
Third, something remarkable is happening to Peter's relationships with his fellow disciples. This is where I want to focus with you. When Peter does stand, notice Peter does not stand alone. The second chapter of Acts, the fourteenth verse says: But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them. When he rises to speak the other disciples get up to stand with him. They stand together. Yes, the other disciples know that Peter has a big mouth that gets him into trouble. They know that Peter promised Jesus more than he could deliver. They know that Peter bragged about how faithful he would be and then failed. But they also know their own sins against Jesus. They could have just pointed the finger at Peter. They could have said, “Here he goes again, talking the big talk.” But they didn't. In humility, they got up to support him by standing alongside him.
They are a vibrant picture of forgiven people forgiving each other. They are tangible evidence of the reality of the mercy of God. They are the most believable witness to the grace of Jesus Christ. Together, they are a community of the redeemed.
All of the aspects of the Trinity of Relationships are essential for us to grow as a church. We need real and vibrant relationships with God, with people outside the church, and with each other. But right now I want to ask you about our relationships with each other. Are we real with each other? Are we forgiving each other? Are we standing with each other, as Peter and the disciples stood together?
I wonder what the community sees when they look at this community of believers, when they look at our church? Do they see a community of redemption, a place where people are genuinely merciful to and supportive of one another?
On the screen behind me is a drawing of the “Trinity of Relationships.”
Please consider prayerfully which of these three essential relationships needs your attention this week. Let’s take a moment right now. This is just between you and God. Let me strongly encourage you to especially consider the relationships you have with other church members. Is there something that is not right in your relationship with someone here? Be real with God and with yourself about the need for reconciliation. Take a deep, gentle breath. Exhale slowly. Close your eyes. Simply ask God, “Where do you want to work in my relationships?”
I wonder what the community sees when they look at this community of believers, when they look at our church? Do they see a community of redemption, a place where people are genuinely merciful to and supportive of one another?
On the screen behind me is a drawing of the “Trinity of Relationships.”
| Relationships with God | ||
 | ||
| Relationships with people outside church | Relationships between church members | |
Please consider prayerfully which of these three essential relationships needs your attention this week. Let’s take a moment right now. This is just between you and God. Let me strongly encourage you to especially consider the relationships you have with other church members. Is there something that is not right in your relationship with someone here? Be real with God and with yourself about the need for reconciliation. Take a deep, gentle breath. Exhale slowly. Close your eyes. Simply ask God, “Where do you want to work in my relationships?”
Just listen for a moment. Ask God for help to make things right again. Has God put someone on your heart in our church? I want to invite you to consider participating in a symbol of reconciliation. Do you remember the story John tells about the Lord’s last night with his disciples before his death. He washed the disciples’ feet. Jesus demonstrated what it meant to be a servant and invited us to be servants to one another.
Here below the pulpit a table has been set up with a basin and towels. Maybe there is someone you should invite to this place today. This is one way we could symbolize our willingness to give a relationship the fresh start it needs.
I read a story about a church that had experienced significant growth. They had been adding several members a month but that suddenly stopped. Visitors came but they wouldn't join. The pastor finally asked a visitor to tell him what was keeping them from becoming a part of the church. They confessed, “We like the church, but…it's cold!” And they were right. The church members talked about being a friendly church, but the crossed arms said otherwise. Visitors didn't have to know all the details. They could sense people were tense. They could tell members were angry with each other. They could feel that forgiveness was being withheld. Members' energy was not going to new people because members were wrapped up in the conflict of the church.
The pastor realized his own lack of forgiveness was contributing to the big chill. He and another leader in the church had a conflict that was causing ill feelings. It was one of those heads-butting, arms-crossed tensions. The pastor mustered his courage, prayed, and called on the man with whom he was at odds. The pastor did his part in resolving the issue. In the following weeks, 2 people joined the church, and 4 more the next week. The visitors who had complained about the coldness of the church were two of the new members. When the pastor asked why they joined, they said, “It felt right all of a sudden.”
When we stand in God's love, when we stand together, and when we stand for people who need to know Jesus Christ, it's Pentecost all over again. It IS right all of a sudden. It is all that is required, and everything that is needed, for the Spirit to work through us.
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