Revelation 2:4 "But I have this against you, that you have left your first love."
Introduction: Do you remember the love you had for your spouse on your wedding day? The anticipation! The excitement! You were so thrilled (and perhaps a little nervous) as you were hours or moments away from starting your life together. Love seemed to be unending. The newness and freshness of newly married life created in your mind an unending joy. As years go by and responsibilities, family and life begin to crowd your heart, what is the one thing that should never happen: love growing cold. God used this illustration of newly married life to rebuke the Old Testament people of God, Israel, in Jeremiah 2:2: “Go and proclaim in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, “I remember concerning you the devotion of your youth, The love of your betrothals, Your following after Me in the wilderness, Through a land not sown." The sad story of Jeremiah 2 is that not only had Israel's love for her Husband, Jehovah God, grown cold, but that love was nowhere to be found.
As you come to Revelation 2:1-7, you find the Lord Jesus Christ speaking to the New Testament people of God, His bride, the church, represented by the church at Ephesus. Ephesus was renowned for its doctrinal precision and intolerance for false teachers. The city of Ephesus was the largest city of Asia Minor, numbering at least 250,000 in number, making it in the words of one commentator the "New York City of its day." The church there was a church of the city that resisted the rank paganism and immorality centralized in the Ephesians' worship of the pagan goddess Artemis (Diana). The church was even effective in rooting out false teachers that attempted to infiltrate the church. (Revelation 2:2,6) However she had lost the one thing that led to Christ's rebuke: she lost or let go her first love. Why is Jesus Christ issuing forth this sharp rebuke?
As you explore each of the letters to the seven churches, Jesus commends two of them and rebukes five of them to express one common theme: "What He wants his church at large to be." Thus in today's post we want to understand the fact the Jesus Christ wants a loving church.
Meet a church in love with Jesus Christ
In order to see the tragic loss of Ephesus' first love, we have to journey back to the beginnings of this church. The church at Ephesus is mentioned nearly 20 times in the New Testament, and is the direct recipient of one Epistle, the church to which young Pastor Timothy was told to shepherd in 1 and 2 Timothy and the place which the Apostle John himself had exercised considerable influence. Paul wrote at least one of his letters from Ephesus and the church itself may very well had been the mother church of the other six churches addressed in Revelation 2-3. Like a whirlwind romance, the people of God at Ephesus were chosen, called and convicted by the Spirit of God and begin to meet in Acts 18. Early missionaries such as Priscilla and Aquilla and wonderful Bible teachers such as Apollos established the then young church on solid footing.
As a young bride desperately wanting to see her fiance, Ephesus could not get enough of Jesus Christ. Their love for Him naturally stirred them up to love one another. The Apostle Paul would end up leading and preaching to the Ephesians for three years. (Acts 20:31). When the day of his departure came, the Ephesians Elders expressed such intense love for him. Acts 20:37-38 records the following touching scene: "And they began to weep aloud and embraced Paul, and repeatedly kissed him, 38 grieving especially over the word which he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they were accompanying him to the ship."
The next snapshot we get of the Ephesian Christians occurs nearly five years later in the Book of Ephesians. How well are they doing in being a loving church? According to Ephesians 1:15, quite well: "For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints."
Following the letter to the Ephesians, we forward another two and four years respectively in the letters of 1 & 2 Timothy. The tone of the message to Timothy and to the church at Ephesus in those two letters can be summarized in 1 Timothy 1:5 - "But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith." Overall, from the early days of Paul's three year ministry in Acts through the letters to Timothy, the church at Ephesus was about the business of love and the truth because she was told to do so and did so quite well. By the time you reach the end of 2 Timothy, Ephesus is a ten year old church, thriving in the midst of a pagan culture and leading the pack of seven churches in Asia Minor.
Does that sound like the beginnings of your relationship with Christ? Are you still passionately in love with the One Whom saved you and called your name at salvation? Following your salvation experience, do you recall what it was like the day of your baptism? You were a new convert and were getting ready to do the first major step of obedience for your Master. Everything was new: a new Bible, a new pastor, new friends, new peace. When you came into that baptism tank you went in a willing Christian and when you came out your were an obedient Christian, ready to serve Christ in the church of which you were now a member. Whether we are talking about churches or Christians, that idea of "first love" should characterize not only the beginning of faith with Christ, but should characterize the course of the Christian life and church life.
The church in love lost its first love
Roughly thirty years span between the close of 2 Timothy to that of Jesus words to Ephesus in Revelation 2:1-7. After introducing Himself as "One who hold the seven stars in His right hand and the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands" in 2:1, Jesus commends Ephesus for six activities or attitudes that would mark any church as being strong. Now we won't take the time to go through all of those traits, because Ephesus' leaving of her first love seems to cancel out any prior achievements. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:2 "If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing."
What is "first love"?
When Jesus states that the Ephesians had lost their "first love" in Revelation 2:4, to what is He referring? The Greek word for "first" is the same word we find in Jesus' reference to the greatest and "foremost" commandment in Matthew 22:37-38, namely "to love the Lord your God will all of your heart, soul, mind and strength." Love for God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is the "First" or "foremost" love. Other "loves" are associated with love for God: love for people or one's neighbor (Matthew 22:39); love for the scriptures (John 14:15, 21); loving to pray (1 Timothy 2:1-3) and love for Christ's second coming. (2 Timothy 4:8) Your love for the Lord Jesus Christ is foremost and really must be the fuel for the other four major activities just mentioned if the Christian and the church is to be a delight and not a drudgery.
Losing your first love is a scary thing
The scary thing for a church or a Christian is that although it is impossible to have love for God without holding to the truth of His Word, one can dogmatically hold to the truth and not have love. Many of you, I'm sure, have known people who have a Christianity of the head but no love in the heart. They know all the answers but lack affection. Much like Samson in Judges 16:20 who was not aware that the Lord had departed from Him when he rose up to defend against the Philistines, churches and Christians can be strong in programs, strong in numbers and even strong in preaching and teaching and yet be unaware of the neglect of first love. The late Dr. John Walvoord wrote concerning the church at Ephesus: Though they had not departed completely from love for God, their love had no longer any fervency, depth or meaning it once had had in the church." 1 Dr. John MacArthur states the matter even better: "They had sunk to the place where they were carrying out their Christian responsibilities with diminishing love for their Lord and others.2
How can the loss of first love take place? What does Jesus command both the Ephesians and us to do when such a tragedy has taken place? Find out tomorrow....
Endnotes:
1. John Walvoord. "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, a Commentary". Moody 1966. Page 55
2. John MacArthur. The MacArthur New Testament Commentary. Moody. 1999. Page 62
Revelation 2:1 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this".
In yesterday's post we considered Christ's battleship - the church, in Revelation 2-3. Christ had John write a series of direct messages from him to seven churches located in Asia Minor or what would be today the country of Turkey. These seven churches were literal and representative of every church of every age and portray churches and even Christians we may see side by side in our day. Why did Jesus address Revelation to these seven churches? He warned five of them, commended two of them and addressed all of them to express what He wanted in His battleship the church.
1. Ephesus - Christ wants a loving church
2. Smyrna - Christ wants a courageous church
3. Pergmamum - Christ wants a vigilant church
4. Thyatira - Christ wants a church of conviction
5. Sardis- Christ wants a revived church
6. Philadelphia - Christ wants a faithful church
7. Laodicea - Christ wants a committed church
Have seen the Battleship - the church militant, floating on God's sea of time until Christ's return, we want to consider today the Captain of the battleship - the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Captain of Christ's Battleship, the church, is Jesus Christ
The number "7" occurs over fifty times in the Book of Revelation. Whenever you see that number, assume it to be God's fingerprint, since it is really God's number, representative of completion, Divine purpose and perfection. Jesus Christ's fingerprints as the Divine God/man is all over His church. He is the captain of the mighty battleship - the church militant. By His Holy Spirit His presence and power is exercised. The Bible is His wheel and we His people are his crew. Sinners who are drowning in the sea of humanity and who by His grace call out to Him are plucked up by His Spirit to bring them on the deck of His safety. Amazingly in each of these seven letters to the seven churches, we see seven descriptions of our Captain - Jesus Christ. All of these descriptions can be found in Revelation 1, which of course is the first vision of Jesus Christ revealed to John.
1. The Loving Lord Jesus Christ.
Revelation 2:1 "To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this". As we see in Revelation 1:20, Jesus Christ is Lord, Owner and Holder of His church. He loves His church, otherwise He would not mention the fact that Ephesus has lost its passion for her "first love". Hence Jesus Christ is the church's loving Lord.
2. The Living Christ.
Revelation 2:8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: The first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life, says this." In Revelation 1:17 Jesus Christ reminded John that He conquered death, hell and the grave. He is the Living Christ.
3. The Word-centered Christ
Revelation 2:12 “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: The One who has the sharp two-edged sword says this." In Revelation 1:16 we see Christ ever associated with the scriptures, which are His sharp, two edged sword. (Hebrews 4:12) In fact Christ himself is called "The Word" in John 1:1 due to the fact He has the same living qualities as the Bible has in its written qualities. To sever the church from the scriptures is to sever her from Christ and His voice.
4. The Judging Christ
Revelation 2:18 “And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: The Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet are like burnished bronze, says this." Revelation 1:15 uses the imagery of burnished bronze to describe Christ as the righteous Judge over His church, and the coming One Who will judge this world.
5. The All-knowing Christ
Revelation 3:1 “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead." In Revelation 1:16 we see Jesus Christ in close proximity to the "seven spirits" which is a seven-fold description of the Holy Spirit. (compare Isaiah 11:2) Jesus promised His Holy Spirit to His church to be her comforter and counselor, both as a corporate body and individual believers throughout the ages. (John 14:17; 15:26; 16:8-11; 1 Corinthians 2:10-13) The stars are the pastors or messengers or "angels" of the seven churches (Revelation 1:20). Thus if the church is to revive and continue on, she needs Christ, the source of life. He alone knows her deeds and knows what the outcome of her journey will be, for He holds all that in His hands.
6. The Holy Christ
Revelation 3:7 “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says this." Revelation 1:18 describes Christ as holding keys. He is the Holy Christ who aims to have a holy church presented unto Him as a spotless bride. (Ephesians 5:27)
7. The Creator Christ
Revelation 3:14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this." The word translated "Beginning" could be better rendered "The Beginner, the Originator, the Majestic Ruler". In other words, Christ is the Ruler and Creator of His church and really all of creation. (John 1:1-3; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Colossians 1:16-17). Hebrews 12:2 describes Jesus Christ as the "author and finisher" of our faith.
Conclusion
Therefore the captain of Christ's battleship, the church, is Jesus Christ Himself. He is described in Revelation 2-3 as the Loving Lord, Living, Word-centered, Judging, All-knowing, Holy and Creator Christ. Why does this matter? Because only He can ensure by His Word that the Christian life and the church to which we are called to be will achieve His calling and purpose. I close this blog with these words from 1 Corinthians 15:58 - "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord."
Revelation 1:19-2:1 1:19 Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things. 1:20 As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches."
In the New Testament we see God raising up a bride for His Son, an organism that is to bear forth the good news to all the world, a people of God who are to live in this age, a called out assembly which in over 100 places is referred to as "the church". In this blog today I want to use the imagery of a battleship to aid us in understanding what John is writing here in Revelation 2 and 3. This blog post we will simply call: "God's Battleship". Why God's Battleship? In other passages such as 2 Corinthians 10:3-4 and Ephesians 6:10-18, we see the imagery of warfare and battle characterizing the nature of the church's journey through this age. Furthermore the Bible uses naval imagery at times to describe the church in passages such as 1 Timothy 1:18-19 and Hebrews 6:18. Two headings will be used to aid us in our navigation through Revelation 2-3:
1. The Battleship's Identity - The Church
2. The Battleship's Captain - Jesus Christ
The Battleship's Identity - The church
The identity of God's battleship in Revelation 2-3 is non-other than the church. In thinking of the seven churches as literal and representative churches, we see in Revelation 2-3 the church floating on God's ordained sea of time - "the church militant". This is a battleship that has been shot at, war torn and bears the marks of the ages. Though the church is shot at, she will never be sunk nor overcome. (Matthew 16:18) Its course was charted by God in eternity past and commissioned forth by Christ in the Gospel of Matthew. In Acts 2 the battleship called "church militant" was launched forth into the sea of time by the Holy Spirit.
The battleship of God, the church militant, has sailed on a sea of high waves and cross winds. Enemies from above, aside and below have attempted to sink God's battleship. (2 Corinthians 10:3-5; Ephesians 6:11-18) When you look at these seven churches in the Book of Revelation, we see the trials and triumphs that come upon Christ's church, and we see seven things desired by Jesus Christ.
1. Jesus wants a loving church. 2:1-7.
The Battleship of God is to be one of love, and yet at times she has been loveless - like Ephesus. Thus Christ wants a loving church.
2. Jesus wants a courageous church. 2:8-11.
At other times God's battleship: the church militant as been brought to the brink of death, like the Smyrnans. The waves of persecution hit her prow and powers below shoot holes in her hull and yet she plows through the enemy. Though vulnerable, God's battleship will not be vanquished. Thus Jesus wants a courageous church.
3. Jesus wants a vigilant church. 2:12-17
John writes on to the third church, the church at Pergamum. In history the church there have been wolves in sheep's clothing who have attempted to teach contrary doctrines to God's Word. The most dangerous attacks on God's battleship occur not from the outside but inside. Thus Christ wants a vigilant church.
4. Jesus wants a church of conviction. 2:18-29
Fourthly we see the church at Thyatira. It was a church at the cross-roads, and at times in the sea of history as well as churches today, God's battleship has had to make a choice - conform to the world or conform to Christ. Thus Jesus Christ wants a church of conviction.
5. Jesus wants a revived church. 3:1-6
Fifthly Jesus addresses the church at Sardis. In the black of night God's battleship passes through the storms of history. No lights can be seen on its decks and the church of Sardis is depicted as the dead church. God has throughout history raised up reformers and revivalists to ring out the words of Jesus: "Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die." God's battleship - the church militant, has at times stopped dead in the water. We are reminded of the fact that Jesus desires a revived church.
6. Jesus wants a faithful church. 3:7-13
God's unstoppable grace and the Spirit's breath of His word has touched hearts, and the church has come to life time and time again. The Philadelphian church was the most commended of the seven churches. At times on the stormy seas of history, God's battleship has pressed the enemy to the shorelines. It seemed at times that evil would be vanquished. Jesus no doubt wants a faithful church.
7. Jesus wants a committed church. 3:14-22
However God has left that work of bringing the Kingdom not to the church, but to His Son when He returns. It is in that final seventh letter to Laodicea that we are reminded that God's battleship in this present age must fire the 66 cannons of God's Word. We are not called to declare "all is at ease in Zion" until God's battleship has crossed this mighty sea of time. The battle will wage at its pitch at the time prior to Christ's coming. Jesus Christ wants a white hot church and a church that can quench spiritual thirst like cold water. Lukewarm churches are to useless and worthy of nothing more than a spewing forth from His mouth.
Christ's battleship: the church militant, is depicted literally and by representation in the seven churches of Revelation 2-3. Jesus rebukes five of them, commends two of them and addresses all of them to express what He wants His church to be. Tomorrow we shall behold the Battleship's Captain....
Revelation 2:4-5 But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place—unless you repent.
Yesterday we began looking at the church of Ephesus in Revelation 2:1-7, noting that Jesus' address to it was rebuking it for losing its "first love" and to communicate His desire for a loving church. We witnessed how Ephesus had a long history through the New Testament of exceptional Bible teachers, preachers and apostles and that she had endured conflict with heresy. Despite her many strengths, Ephesus had grown cold in the one area that is of chief importance: her first love for the Lord Jesus Christ.
Think of "first love" as a fist against apathy and unbelief
As we noted yesterday, the idea of "first love" is in reference to the "foremost" love that the believer ought to have for God. (Matthew 22:37-38) Like an opposable thumb, love for God enables the Christian to grab hold of the other types of things that the Bible commands us to love: love for neighbor (Matthew 22:39); love for the scriptures (John 14:21); loving to pray (1 Timothy 2:1-3) and loving Christ's second coming (2 Timothy 4:8). Now when you take all five of those and ball them up into the fist of faith - you will deal a knockout punch to apathy and unbelief every time. However, take away the opposable thumb of "loving God" and what do you got? No way to grip. Ephesus had over the decades defended the faith, defeated heresy and demonstrated commitment, however she was going through the motions. Ephesus was showing the wear of battle, and her worship services bore the heavy atmosphere of suffocating routine. It was the "love for Jesus" that she needed to get back if she was ever to continue as an effective church for Jesus' sake.
What Jesus told Ephesus to do in regaining her "first love"
We read these words in Revelation 2:5 "Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place—unless you repent." Jesus tells her to "remember" and "repent". Why do this? Robert M. Mounce in his commentary notes: "The church is called upon to remember the earlier days in which love abounded in the congregation. Memory can be a powerful force in effecting a return to a more satisfying relationship."1 Repentance comes from a Greek word meaning: to change one's mind or heart about one's sin.
Therefore in order to begin the road back to recovery, the church will have to go back to the place where it last remembers having its first love. What Jesus then does is mention a group of false teachers called "the Nicolatians". Who were they? According to Jesus' third letter to the church of Pergamum in Revelation 2:12-17, the Nicolatians held to the same doctrine and practices like Balaam did back in Numbers 22-25. Balaam had been a Pagan prophet who attempted to curse Israel but instead blessed the nation. To attain payment from the Moabite King Balak, Balaam ended up sending forth Moabite women to seduce the Israelite men and lead Israel into gross immorality and idolatry. The Nicolatians may very well had combined some form of Judaism with pagan rituals and immorality.2
Whenever you consider what the Ephesian church was up against, she was fighting for her life. She won the battle but almost ended up losing the war. Now why does Jesus refer to her rejection of the Nicolatians in Revelation 2:6 when he had just rebuked her for forsaking her first love in Revelation 2:4? Whenever you consider her not "enduring evil men" in Revelation 2:2 to what we see of her hatred of the Nicolatians in 2:6, it appears Jesus is giving her a clear way to turn around her condition.
Getting back your first love - warnings and prescriptions
Whatever had taken place in her battling of the Nicolatian sect, it had weakened her to the point of losing her first love. Has that ever happened to you? Perhaps in your "fight of faith" or experiences of intense disappointment, you have closed off the portion of your heart that you swore to yourself "never again." Churches are full of Christians who are committed, hard working people, and yet there is a corner in their heart that got hurt, and they decided to never make themselves vulnerable.
Jesus knows what is best for his people. Often we may to go back to the proverbial scene of the crime - whether it be literal or mental. Repentance in this case has to do with telling God that you regret closing your heart off to His love the day you got hurt. The moment you talk to the Lord and ask Him to forgive you for resisting His repeated attempts to heal your pain, He will. (Ephesians 4:25-32, 1 John 1:9)
Jesus warns of the increased danger we face as a church and Christians in these last days in Matthew 24:11-12 "Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. 12 Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold." May you and I be not among that number.
What is the solution to gaining back your first love? How can we be more loving Christians?
As we already mentioned, Jesus lays out the prescription as the Great Physician. First, remember back from whence you last recall having a passionate love for God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Secondly, repent for letting go of that first love. A third prescription Jesus gives is what we could term: "receive the word from the Spirit." Revelation 2:7 states: "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God." In all seven letters in Revelation 2-3, Jesus urges the membership to heed the Spirit's voice speaking forth from His words - the words of scripture. Whenever we begin to exercise the love we had let go of, love for other things will automatically return as well: love for people, the scriptures, prayer and Christ's return. Jesus wants a loving church. May we endeavor to be a people of God who love Him, people, His word, prayer and His soon return. May we love Him first and foremost!
Endnotes:
1. Robert M. Mounce. The New International Commentary on the New Testament. Eerdmans. 1977. Page 88
2. Interestingly enough, the name "Balaam" in the Hebrew and "Nicolatian" in the Greek translate nearly in the same way: "Balaam" means "mastery over the people" and "Nicolatian" refers to "victory or conqueror over the people."
Acts 3:11-12 "While he was clinging to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them at the so-called portico of Solomon, full of amazement. 12 But when Peter saw this, he replied to the people, “Men of Israel, why are you amazed at this, or why do you gaze at us, as if by our own power or piety we had made him walk?"
Yesterday we looked at Peter's first sermon in Acts 2, noting the essential elements of a Biblical sermon. Peter was the leader of the twelve who preached the first three of roughly twenty sermons in the Book of Acts.
In today's post we want to explore his second sermon found in Acts 3:11-26 to discover the four-fold grace that made Peter's ministry a ministry of grace.
Understanding what grace is by way of the healing of a lame man
The context leading up to Peter's second sermon is set in the outer courts of the massive temple complex in Jerusalem. According to Alfred Edersheim, the temple area had 9 gates that took the worship from the outer court of the Gentiles into the formal temple grounds composed of ascending worship areas called respectively the courts of the Women, Israel and Priests.1 Eight of those gates were side gates, with the ninth and most important one called "the Beautiful Gate. It was at the Beautiful Gate that we see the miracle of the lame man healed by the power of God working through Peter and John. Edersheim describes this gate: "The gate itself was made of dazzling Corinthians brass, most richly ornamented; and so massive were its double doors that it needed the united strength of twenty men to open and close them. This was the "Beautiful Gate"; and on its steps had they been wont these many years to lay the lame man..." 2
Now what does this miracle have to do with grace? The man in question had been lame, lying feet away from a religious system that claimed to give worshippers access to God. He could not help himself, nor could the power of any man. Grace is God doing for us what we could never do for ourselves. (Ephesians 2:8-9) Further the man was a beggar, incapable of taking care of himself without the help of others. When God's grace is extended to a person, the riches of God's love and mercy are extended, meaning that in grace, God gives to us what we do not deserve. (Ephesians 2:4) The outward beauty of the brass and marble of that temple could never compare to the beauty of God's grace, for no unconverted mind has ever conceived of all that God has prepared for those who love Him. (1 Corinthians 2:9) With this miracle and its setting, Peter launches into his second sermon to deliver the ministry of grace that would result in 5,000 conversions! (Acts 4:4)
In understanding what the miraculous nature of grace is, we can now briefly by outline form consider what made Peter's ministry a ministry of grace. Note the following four-fold grace that marked his ministry:
1. The Grace of the Savior - Jesus Christ. Acts 3:11-18,20-21
As one writer has noted, Jesus Christ did not come merely to bring grace, He is grace. Grace is not a power, but the Person of Christ. Titus 2:11 unfolds the idea of the grace of God "appearing". Jesus Himself is described in John 1:14 as being full of "grace and truth." Throughout Peter's sermon we see constant reference to Jesus Christ - the Personification of grace.
2. The Grace of the Scriptures. Acts 3:18, 21-26
Grace again is God doing for us what we could never do for ourselves. Revealed scripture is God unfolding his mind to man. Apart from the Bible, no one could know Jesus Christ, who in turn reveals God the Father. The unrevealed things belong to God, and the revealed things belong to us and our children. (compare Deuteronomy 29:29) The scripture is the only instrument by which God effects salvation in the heart for saving faith (Psalm 19:7; Romans 10:17) and ongoing growth in sanctification. (John 17:17) Peter notes that Christ's crucifixion was announced beforehand by the prophets. (Acts 3:18) In the Old Testament the New is concealed, and in the New Testament the Old is revealed.
3. The Grace of the Holy Spirit. Acts 3:19
It is often common in the New Testament to see a ministry of the Holy Spirit without direct reference to Him. When we compare Acts 3:19 to Acts 2:38, there is only One Agent of grace that could convict, call and draw sinners to repentance and faith - the Holy Spirit. Peter relied ever constantly on the Holy Spirit for the power to preach and relied upon the Spirit for the results of his preaching. Grace means I am dependant upon God for everything. Peter's appeal for his listeners to repent and return in Acts 3:19 is among the clearest expressions of the Gospel found anywhere in the Bible. Only the Spirit can stir the heart to repentance, so that simultaneously the person can repent, believe and be saved. (2 Timothy 2:25; Acts 2:38)
4. The Grace of salvation. Acts 3:19
We have seen the grace of the Savior, Scripture and the Spirit. What is the fruit of grace? Salvation. Acts 3:26 concludes the sermon, however Acts 4:4 reports the results: "But many of those who had heard the message believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand." Praise be to God for the miraculous ministry of grace!
Endnotes:
1. Alfred Edersheim. The Temple - its Ministry and Services. Hendrickson Publishers. 1994. Page 25
2. Alfred Edersheim. The Temple - its Ministry and Services. Hendrickson Publishers. 1994. Page 24
