Today’s passage is part of
Peter’s sermon following the original, powerful experience of the Holy Spirit
at Pentecost.
The experience of the Spirit
began with a sound like a strong wind and tongues of fire extending to all
members of the early Christian community as they gathered in the upper room
(2:1-3).
The Spirit then enabled the
gathered to speak “in other tongues” (2:4), and when the many Jews from
disparate nations who were in Jerusalem became aware of the spectacle, the
Spirit enabled them all to hear the Christians in their own languages (2:5-13).
Peter then stood up to speak to the crowd, as told in the opening part of
today’s passage (2:14a).
The sermon has two main
parts to it, each with its own main point:
The first part (2:15-21)
interprets these happenings as the “last days” fulfillment of the prophet
Joel’s promise of God’s Spirit being poured out on all people.
The second (2:22-36), from
which our passage comes, focuses on Jesus, especially his death and
resurrection, the main point being that these were part of God’s plan as
revealed in prophetic Psalms.
The end of this second section
then relates the story of Jesus back to the Pentecost events, with Peter
demonstrating that it is in fact the risen and exalted Jesus who has poured out
the gift of the Spirit (verse 33). The Pentecost events then in turn serve as a
call to recognize Jesus’ status as “both Lord and Christ” (verse 36). Peter’s
speech thus serves to link the story of Jesus with the giving of the Spirit and
to interpret both as fulfilling Old Testament prophecies.
Besides the introductory verse 14a, our passage has
three parts to it:
Verses 25-31 interpret Jesus’ resurrection as the fulfillment of Psalm 16:8-11.
Verse 32 restates Jesus’ resurrection as God’s act and asserts the apostles’ status as witnesses of it.
We must remember the whole
reason Peter brings up the story of Jesus here: to explain the experience of
the Spirit at Pentecost. The Spirit’s work must be connected to the story of
Jesus.
This invites us to reflect
on the work of the Spirit in our own lives: How can we understand God’s work
in, among, and through us as part of the story of Jesus, particularly as part
of the story of his death and resurrection? If our own stories cannot be
meaningfully connected to that of Jesus, we have somewhere gone astray. The
symbols of the cross and the empty tomb ought to characterize all that we do as
Christians, whether individually or corporately. Or perhaps better put, these
symbols ought to be the lenses through which we view all that God performs in
and through our lives.[2]
[1] Image of the Trinity copyright © Ed Riojas, Higher Things
[2] https://www.workingpreacher.org/commentaries/revised-common-lectionary/second-sunday-of-easter/commentary-on-acts-214-22-32-2
[3] Collect for the blessing on the Word, Lutheran Service Book © 2006 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis
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