PASTOR’S NOTES
Then Peter said to them, Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
Talk about God’s perfect timing! This week’s text and where we are as a church is perfectly timed for Easter weekend! What an amazing text for such an amazing service that is coming our way! As I close my eyes and imagine Pentecost in Acts 2, my thoughts go towards a crowd much like many will experience this Easter weekend. There are of course many differences in what the people then were celebrating and what we will be celebrating, but we will have more commonalities than you think.
Much like Pentecost, Easter weekend is mainly a traditional weekend where people come together to celebrate what God has done in the past. Churches will be full of people who only grace the doors once or twice a year. To these people, Easter is nothing more than a traditional holiday which Jesus is one of many parts of. Churches will look very different than most Sundays as there will be new faces wearing their Sunday best, hunting for eggs and taking family pictures to post on their social media pages.
It’s sad to say, but today’s Easter celebration for many people has become more about tradition than it has the true celebration of the risen King Jesus. This is where we resemble Pentecost in Acts 2. In Acts 2, many people were there celebrating what God had done but were not ready for what God was about to do. The people for the most part believed in the existence of God but had not been convicted by the power of the Gospel of Jesus.
Then came the Holy Spirit and the preaching of the Gospel! Talk about an amazing service! All different walks of life, a room filled with the Spirit, and Peter’s perfect sermon! In the text, Peter’s sermon to the people was spot on. His words were Jesus centered, woven in scripture, relevant to the people and what they were experiencing, and were honest. Peter didn’t hold back and even though his words would not have been popular at the time, they were words the people desperately needed to hear!
Peter preaches, “Therefore, let all the house Isreal know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
I pray now for more Easter services like this coming Sunday. I pray for open eyes and ears, men to preach loudly the Gospel of Jesus, and the Holy Spirit to move like we read in Acts 2!
SCRIPTURE TO GO ALONG WITH THIS WEEK’S MESSAGE
Read Matthew 26-28 this week. Take time and read daily leading up to Easter Sunday these chapters.