The Gospel was to First be Preached Beginning at
Jerusalem!
Do we
have a time in the Word of God or a record when we see
this happening? Yes, of course we do!
When do
we see the “GOSPEL FIRST Preached” and by Whom? On the
Day of Pentecost!
Where
do we read of the FIRST “preaching of the Gospel”? In
Acts 2:14 we see the first preached gospel message and it
was Peter who preached it. Now remember, we read that
the gospel was what? It was Jesus Christ and Him
Crucified!
THAT is
the gospel...the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus
Christ. What, then was the purpose of the Gospel? The
entire message of the Messiah and the "Good News" is
Repentence and Remission of Sins!
Where
then, do we see REPENTANCE and REMISSION OF SINS first
preached? To the thief on the cross? After all Jesus
said “today you shall be with me in paradise”. NO, it was
not to the thief. Was it to the men on the road to
Emmaus? No, it was not there. Was it in the upper room
after the crucifixion? Not at all. It was Here, in Acts
2:14-36! It was On the Day of Pentecost!
Chapter
2 begins "When the Day of Pentecost Was Fully Come" and we
see a description of what followed. The gift of the Holy
Ghost was poured out, yet, we still do not see the Gospel
being preached to anyone, not until we get a bit further
in the chapter.
In the
beginning few verses when Peter did begin to speak (Acts
2:14), he preached a little “background”. Peter, however
didn't preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ until we get to
the 22nd verse. Look at that verse and you'll see that he
began to preach JESUS!
Acts
2:22 "Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of
Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles
and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst
of you, as ye yourselves also know:..."
He
preached Jesus (and said ...now you folks already know
this)...You crucified him.....but GOD RAISED HIM UP....
(Notice he said IT WAS NOT POSSIBLE THAT HE SHOULD BE HELD
BY DEATH!) (verse 24). Jesus COULD not be held by death
because he had NO sin! Romans 6:23 "For the wages of
sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through
Jesus Christ our Lord."
He then
began to remind them of David’s words and then said (in
verse 29) Let me tell you about David....David is DEAD and
buried and we know where his tomb is!
Verse
32 proclaims another part of the Gospel that is often left
out of today's preaching. It is the RESURRECTION! We
know the resurrection of Christ is also part of the Gospel
message, since, without the resurrection, our faith is in
a dead man! Jesus, however, is not dead, he is alive!
Peter
states WE ARE ALL WITNESSES of the resurrection. (verse
32).
Acts
2:33 "Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted,
and having received of the Father the promise of the
Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see
and hear."
I like
Peter's reasoning in Verse 33. He says Jesus was (and is)
exalted and we KNOW THAT HE WAS BECAUSE WE HAVE RECEIVED
THE HOLY GHOST.
IN
OTHER WORDS...WE WOULD NOT HAVE RECEIVED THIS, THE HOLY
GHOST, UNLESS JESUS HAD BEEN EXALTED TO THE PLACE OF
POWER AND AUTHORITY (GOD’S RIGHT HAND). He knew the Holy
Ghost would not be given until after Jesus had received
Authority because Jesus himself had already told them
this. Look at the words of Jesus:
John
16:7 "Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is
expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away,
the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I
will send him unto you."
Peter
was in effect saying that Now, because we have received
the Holy Ghost, we KNOW it is true that Jesus is exalted!
Peter,
being a Jew, knew the mindset concerning King David and
how important David was to the Jews. He then began to
explain that it wasn’t DAVID who ascended! It was the
seed of David, Jesus! (Verse 34).
Peter
gets to the root of the matter in Verse 36: He says
...God made that JESUS WHOM YE CRUCIFIED both LORD AND
CHRIST! In other words, Jesus is the Christ (the Anointed
one of God, he is Lord and Master, Lord and Savior, and
Lord over all!
Verse
37 Contains the question we all need to ask ourselves:
"Men
and brethren, what shall we do?"
Look at
the response of Peter. Do you remember the words of Jesus
in Luke 24:47?
Luke
24:47 "And that repentance and remission of sins should
be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at
Jerusalem."
Do you
understand what Peter was preaching here? It was exactly
what Jesus spoke of. We know this by the answer Peter
gave to them!
Look
what Peter says: Acts 2:38 "Then Peter said unto them,
Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of
Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall
receive the gift of the Holy Ghost."
Acts
2:39 "For the promise is unto you, and to your
children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as
the Lord our God shall call."
THIS
is the GOSPEL!
They
ALL heard the Word. They were all pricked in their
hearts, and by today's standards, the were immediately
saved when they "believed" the Word. Friend, they already
believed the word. Their hearts would NOT have been
"pricked" if they had not believed the words of Peter.
The gospel is not merely "believing" that it is true.
Even the very first believers knew this and it is evident
by their question "Men and brethren, what shall we do?",
that they realized there was SOMETHING that needed to be
done OTHER THAN SIMPLE BELIEF. They already believed at
this point.
Peter's
answer to them is exactly what Jesus said to do in Mark
chapter 16 and Matthew 28. He told them what they MUST
DO. Salvation comes, not by simply believing the Gospel
but by OBEYING THE GOSPEL! Peter said REPENT but he
didn't stop there. He said Repent AND be be Baptized.
There should be no argument here at all, yet most of the
Christian world today will argue over
Baptism.
Salvation comes by OBEDIENCE to the Gospel, not by simply
"believing" it.
II
Thessalonians 1:7-10 "...When the Lord Jesus shall be
revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming
fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and
that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ”
I
Peter 4:17 "For the time is come that judgment must
begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us,
what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel
of God?"
OBEY
THE GOSPEL. Let's continue as we examine what it means to
"Obey" the gospel. As we shall see, "Obey" means more
than simply believing the gospel!
