Title: What Can We Do?
Contents
what shall we do
Acts 2:37-42
the reason I couldn't sleep
The pastor met the deacon on Monday morning, and he looked very tired. So the pastor asked.
"Where are you sick?"
So the butler answered
Said. The pastor was feeling a little better and said to the deacon.
"Don't take it so seriously that you can't sleep."
Then the butler answered.
I hope no one can sleep tonight.
What should we do to those who heard Peter's sermon and were pierced today? In the past, when those who persecuted Jesus, who had no sin, and who caused Jesus to die are now stabbed in their hearts, reflect on their mistakes and do not know what to do, Peter shows them the way to be forgiven and to recover.
Today, I believe that we need to listen to the Word again in the form of the early church and with a heart of returning to the beginning.
First - you must repent.
Those who heard Peter's sermon were pierced in their hearts. God sent His only begotten Son Jesus for the long-awaited Messiah, but ignorant humans mocked, cursed, cursed, beaten and crucified Him without recognizing Him as the Messiah. How foolish is it?
Realizing their folly, they ask the other apostles who were with Peter.
Then he asks the question, “What should we do?” To that question, Peter gives them an answer.
That is repentance.
Acts 2:38 “Peter said, Repent ye”
What is the greatest sin in the world? thievery? Murder? scam? There are many other sins, but the biggest sin in the world is not believing in Jesus.
God sent His only begotten Son, Jesus, to this earth to save sinful humans. This is an expression of God's love for man and grace. Those who accept this with gratitude and believe in Jesus, no matter what sins they have committed in the past, come to Jesus, repent, and if they do not return to the past, they will be forgiven and saved. But foolishly rejecting that grace and love and not accepting Jesus is a sin among the unforgivable sins.
The standard of human sin is the morality of the world, but Almighty God's standard of sin is not believing in Jesus. No matter how good or good you are, if you do not believe in Jesus, that person has nothing to do with salvation. Therefore, we must come before Jesus, and the way to receive the forgiveness of sins is by relying on the blood of Jesus.
1 John 1:1 “My children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. If anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”
1 John 1:7-9 “As He is in the light, so if we also walk in the light, we have fellowship and the blood of His Son Jesus cleanses us from all sins. no, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
No one can come before God the Father except Jesus.
The name of Jesus! True repentance through the blood of Jesus leads to salvation.
Although they had the Savior Jesus die on the cross, Jesus did not forsake them. Rather, His death opened the way for salvation. “Whoever believes in the Lord Jesus will be saved!” It is possible when you repent. You cannot approach the holy God with a sinful heart and body. It is possible only when we are washed clean with the blood of Jesus.
Although we believe in Jesus, if we sin and do not repent, we cannot draw closer to God. God does not look at the past, he sees the present. No matter how many repentances you have in the past, it is of no use. How am I right now? Are you living according to the will and providence of God? Do I always repent? The present is important. I hope you will become believers who come to God by repenting every day!
Second - Receive the Holy Spirit
The next word to them while urging repentance at the question of “what to do” is that when you repent, the Holy Spirit will come upon your empty hearts.
We live in a spiritual world. The fleshly things cannot overcome the spiritual things. [1 Peter 5:8] “Be sober and watchful, your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” This method is possible only when you receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit. To be filled with the Holy Spirit means that I am the master of my life, not the devil, but God the Holy Spirit.
“What should I do?” To those who were stabbed in the heart, Peter urged them to repent and said that they would receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Even if they repented, if the Holy Spirit does not become the master of each and every one of them, their faith will wither and their spiritual battles will begin. It is a failure to become a person who crucifies Jesus again.
Every day “May the Holy Spirit be my Lord and guide my life!” must confess. And only absolute obedience to the guidance of the Holy Spirit can lead us to live a victorious life.
Also, unless you are filled with the Holy Spirit, you cannot acknowledge Jesus as your Savior.
No matter how much you major in theology and get a doctorate, what do you do? If you deny Jesus, you are a forsaken person. Occasionally, people called Doctors of Theology make statements that deny the divinity of Jesus, causing crowds or confusion to those with weak faith.
What is the reason for this? It is to deny Jesus when they try to know Jesus as knowledge and feel the limits of their knowledge.
It is impossible for human knowledge to know that Jesus is the Son of God. No matter how shallow knowledge and common sense that humans know, it is not enough. Without faith there is no belief. It's something I don't understand. That is why we must receive the Holy Spirit. When you are filled with the Holy Spirit, you will come to know things that you could not know with knowledge.
Those who were listening to Peter's sermon realized that they were sinners, immediately repented and were filled with the Holy Spirit, and as many as 3,000 disciples became disciples. Even though they said that they were ignorant of Galilee and that they were drunk during the day because of their discipleship, the Holy Spirit worked through Peter and the disciples, so they repented and accepted Jesus as their Savior and became God's children. It is the beginning of quantitative growth as a church.
Please receive only the filling of the Holy Spirit!
I pray that you will not end with the temporary filling of the Holy Spirit, but pray to receive the filling of the Holy Spirit every day and live a life where you experience God's mysterious providence, love, and grace from the Holy Spirit every day!
Third - faith community
The life of faith cannot stand alone.
Faith can grow when we build a community of faith.
Discipleship is fashionable these days in every church. I see discipleship training being introduced in most churches to strengthen lay training. In the past, praying unconditionally and emphasizing the filling of the Holy Spirit, there were advantages to it, but many points were also found. It is good to pray, to be filled with the Holy Spirit, and to have passionate faith, but if you do not have knowledge of Jesus or the Bible, you may fall into mysticism and fall into the wrong path. That is why the church needs the filling of the Holy Spirit, prayer, and discipleship, that is, nurture.
Our faith cannot be matured through weekly sermons. Word training is required. Only then can you learn the Word deeply and systematically and walk the right path of faith.
The Early Church of Pentecost was such a church.
Through the teachings of the apostles, the fellowship of faith and the time of intercession and prayer, the church grew and the saints matured.
Jesus Life Church wants to be such a church.
I ask you to become a member of the church that grows with the spirituality and faith of the early church as a background, so that you can become a mature member.