But Peter, standing
with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all
who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. For
these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of
the day. But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: “‘And in the
last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all
flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men
shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even on my male
servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they
shall prophesy. And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the
earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; the sun shall be turned to
darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the
Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be
saved.’ (Acts
2:14-21).
The Holy Spirit compelled Peter to explain the
reason why devout pilgrims in the crowd heard the disciples… “telling in
our own tongues the mighty works of God” (Acts 2:11), while mockers in
their midst accused the disciples of being drunk. The Spirit brought to his
mind and from his lips the words of God spoken by the prophet Joel about… “the
last days”. We learn here that the last days began with the birth of
the Church and that they will be filled with the prophetic word and miraculous
works of God right up until… “the day of the Lord comes”. As
Peter addressed the crowd, the Spirit inspired him to share the truth behind
the last days.
The last days begin with the outpouring of the
Holy Spirit. When the Spirit came in fulfillment of Jesus’ promise, He
transformed 120 ordinary but faithful Christ followers… “In those days
Peter stood up among the brothers (the company of persons was in all about 120)
and said” (Acts 1:15), into powerful, prophetic witnesses… “And
they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues
as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:4). This promise remains for
every Christ follower today. We receive the Holy Spirit with our new birth… “In
him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation,
and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit” (Ephesians
1:13), and we are exhorted to be filled with the Holy Spirit every day… “do
not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit”
(Ephesians 5:18). As we obey the call to be filled with His Spirit,
Christ transforms us into effective witnesses for Him until He returns.
The last days end with the coming of the day
of the Lord. The spirit inspired Peter to give a glimpse of the culmination of
the last days when… “the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent
day”. The day of the Lord is to be feared by all who mock and reject
the gospel that we proclaim during these last days because… “They will
suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the
Lord and from the glory of his might” (2 Thessalonians 1:9). The day of
the Lord is eagerly anticipated by true disciples because… “when he comes
on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who
have believed, because our testimony to you was believed” (2 Thessalonians
1:10). As we are filled with His Spirit we live each day like Christ may be
coming back today!
The last days are for the salvation of souls.
The Spirit moved Peter to conclude his exhortation with the prophetic
revelation that the purpose of these last days is the saving of lost souls… “everyone
who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved”. Jesus made very
clear that the occupation of every true disciple is sharing His gospel because
our response to it makes all the difference on the day of the Lord… “Go
into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever
believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be
condemned” (Mark 16:15-16). We have a great privilege and
responsibility to share His gospel during these last days.
As we grow up into Christ, and we are filled with His Spirit, we are
compelled to share His gospel by…
The Truth Behind the Last Days.
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