14 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. 15 For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day; 16 but this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
17 ‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams;
18 yea, and on my menservants and my maidservants in those days
I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will show wonders in the heaven above
and signs on the earth beneath,
blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;
20 the sun shall be turned into darkness
and the moon into blood,
before the day of the Lord comes,
the great and manifest day.
21 And it shall be that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’
22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs which God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24 But God raised him up, having loosed the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. 25 For David says concerning him,
‘I saw the Lord always before me,
for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken;
26 therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced;
moreover my flesh will dwell in hope.
27 For thou wilt not abandon my soul to Hades,
nor let thy Holy One see corruption.
28 Thou hast made known to me the ways of life;
thou wilt make me full of gladness with thy presence.’
St. Peter preaching on Pentecost (Florence, 15th c.)
29 “Brethren, I may say to you confidently of the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants upon his throne, 31 he foresaw and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. 32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. 33 Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this which you see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend into the heavens; but he himself says,
‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand,
35 till I make thy enemies a stool for thy feet.’
36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is to you and to your children and to all that are far off, every one whom the Lord our God calls to him.” 40 And he testified with many other words and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” 41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.
Today’s excerpt is a rather long section from Acts but as the very first public speech by any of the disciples it’s instructive to look at it as a whole and tease out what Peter was saying. Saint Luke of course exercised editorial control over what he recorded but by including Acts as one of the books of the Holy Scriptures the Church is saying that everything here deserves special attention as part of God’s revelation of what it means to live as Christians. It also says that other eyewitnesses who read Luke’s Book of Acts as it was circulated in the early church could agree that his testimony accurately reflected the history, people and faith they themselves had experienced.
Before the Resurrection and Pentecost, Peter denied that he knew Jesus, was afraid of questioning by a servant girl and fled from the scene of Christ’s suffering. Now he boldly stands up in front of the same crowds that less than two months earlier had called for Christ’s crucifixion. And he had no way of knowing in advance that they wouldn’t turn on him as well. In Christ he had new courage.
The eleven stood with him, when before they too had fled. And there’s no more of the jockeying for power that had marked their earlier relationship.
Peter doesn’t pander to the crowd. He rejects claims that the disciples are all drunk, and instead speaks respectfully and forthrightly to the reasonable and curious people who are perplexed but not mocking.
He speaks to them in the Old Testament terms and expectations they understand.
He speaks out of his own experience, and delivers as of first importance a message of joy and universal access to victory over death in the risen Christ.
Just as Jesus had done in His preaching, Peter underlines that this message is for all, not for a select few initiated into the mysteries of priestcraft or special wisdom.
He proclaims Jesus as Lord and Savior, not just an inspiring spiritual teacher. (This is what scholars call “high Christology”; skeptics like to argue that such a high view of Jesus did not emerge until centuries later.)
Within his joyful and hopeful message Peter does not shy away from pointing to the crowd’s sin in delivering Jesus to crucifixion. But even this can be forgiven. Peter’s tone is not of berating and judgment, but of mercy and new life. In response, many in the crowd are moved, “cut to the heart,” and wish to take the next step.
Peter’s answer to the question, “What shall we do?” in 33 AD is the same we give today in 2014. “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” In other words, come join us and immerse yourself in the life of the Church, the life in Christ.
Update
Autumn near the Chancery
I’m on my way this morning to Saint Tikhon’s Seminary for a retreat today and a meeting tomorrow of the Board of Trustees. Metropolitan Tikhon arrived yesterday for the funeral of Matushka Doris (Daria) Mason, the wife of Father John Mason. May her memory be eternal!
