"But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams. And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; and they shall prophesy.' "
 
                                                                               Acts 2:16-18
 
God said He would pour out His Spirit on all flesh, male and female regardless of age – not just the apostles or early Christians. I include myself in that "all," and I long for the visions and dreams. Lord, pour out your Spirit on me again.
 
Today's Thought: Pentecost is for everyone regardless of age, sex, or time in history.
 
..............................
 
" ' "And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved." Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves know – .... This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses.' "
 
                                                                           Acts 2:21-22, 32
 
Peter soon turned the focus from the experience of the wind, fire, and tongues to Jesus – His life, death and resurrection (vss. 23-31). Some people become so enamored by the gift that they ignore the Giver. The person who truly desires the Baptism of the Holy Spirit should make Jesus the focus – in worship, praise, and love – instead of speaking in tongues. They Holy Spirit will exalt Jesus. I think of all the times I have witnessed people being Spirit-baptized, it has been in times of praise, either in church or in personal devotions.
 
Today's Thought: The focus of Pentecost is Jesus – not speaking in tongues.
 
...............................
 
"Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, 'Men and brethren, what shall we do?' "
 
                                                                              Acts 2:37
 
The first step in the process of salvation is conviction – being cut to the heart. When the people heard Peter proclaim the "new" story of Jesus' life, death, resurrection, and ascension to heaven – according to the Old Testament prophecies, they were pricked in their hearts. They themselves had been eye-witnesses (vs. 22), and had been party to his death on the cross (vs. 23). So they knew what Peter said was true. Conviction brings us to the point where we say, "What must I do?" This conviction comes from the Holy Spirit who reproves of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8). Then they responded to this conviction.
 
Today's Thought: Conviction causes us to say, "What must I do?"
 
......................................
 
"Then Peter said to them, 'Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as man as the Lord our God will call.' "
 
                                                                          Acts 2:38-39
 
This is the normal order: conviction (vs. 37), repentance, water baptism, and Holy Spirit baptism. Although God is not bound to this order, it is the norm. To pick and choose and say, "Lord, I want this but not that," would be like a child rejecting some of his Christmas gifts. God offers to everyone His gifts – Salvation and Spirit Baptism. Some people accept the gift of salvation but reject the gift of the Holy Spirit. These gifts are for everyone – me and my children – because God calls everyone to receive His gifts. I want everything He wants to give me out of His rich treasures.
 
Today's Thought: The gift of Spirit Baptism is a part of God's normal process after Salvation.
 
.......................................
 
"And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, 'Be saved from this perverse generation.' Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them."
 
                                                             Acts 2:40-41
 
The message remains the same 2,000 years later: "Save yourselves from this perverse generation." What does "perverse" mean? It means to be crooked – out of alignment with God and His way. The world is out of sinc with God's way – it is all messed up. When a person accepts Christ, His "straightness" does not fit with the crooked culture. The mark of separation from the perverse generation is water baptism, indicating a turning from the crooked way to follow Christ.
 
Today's Thought: Following Christ is a rejection of this perverse and crooked generation.
 
.......................................
 
"And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, the breaking of bread, and in prayers.....So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart..."
 
                                                                     Acts 2:42, 46
 
True Believers have a desire to be a part of the fellowship of other believers. The community of faith where they learn doctrine, pray and commune with God, observe the ordinance of the Lord's Supper, and have time with each other is a normal part of being a Christian. The person who does not desire being with other Christians will probably not be strong in his faith.
 
Today's Thought: A desire to be with other believers is a normal result of Salvation.
 
........................................
 
"Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles."
 
                                                                        Acts 2:43
 
The witness of God at work in their midst cause a response in peoples' hearts – fear. Although I am convinced that miracles alone do bring conviction nor cause people to repent, they certainly can be a vehicle to draw people to God. The miracles were validators or the apostles' message. And even today they continue to convince people that the Gospel message is true and God is present.
 
Today's Thought: Miracles are validation of the message and God's presence.
 
...........................................
 
"Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need..... Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles' feel; and they distributed to each one as anyone had need."
 
                                                                      Acts 2:44-45; 4:34-35
 
Some have called this communism. But communal living is not communism. Communism is anti-god and is not voluntary. Communalism was a natural response of the early believers in order to be a group. But communal living does not work practically. Human nature being what it is, there will always be those who are deceitful (chapter 5) and discontent leading to arguments (chapter 6). Communalism sounds good but is impractical on a daily level.
 
Today's Thought: The early believers practiced communalism, not communism.
 
............................................
 
"And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved."
 
                                                                       Acts 2:47b
 
Jesus was building His Church, just as He said He would. And He still is. People are daily coming to faith and being added to His Church. Building His Church is not my job. My responsibility is to be a faithful witness. Then He does the work of building His Church.
 
Today's Thought: The Lord builds the Church – not us.
 
....................................................
 
"Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour."
 
                                                                           Acts 3:1
 
Jesus had his prayer times early in the morning. For Peter and John, the prayer time was 3:00 in the afternoon. The hour of prayer was not prescribe in the Law, and we are not under obligation. Yet having a designated time to seek God is a good and helpful practice as a part of the pattern of daily life. We do other thing by schedule – working, eating, going to bed, brushing our teeth. So having a pattern of daily prayer is not an unnatural thing. The Psalmist had his times of seeking God – "Early" (Psalm 63:1), in the night (Psalm 63:8), "evening, and morning and at noon I will pray (Psalm 55:17). It may not be the same for everyone, so the question is not the "when" but the consistency. "When You said, 'Seek My face,' my heart said to You, 'Your face, LORD, I will seek' " (Psalm 27:8).
 
Today's Thought: The habit of prayer is Scriptural.
 
............................
 
"And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple."
 
Acts 3:2
 
I wonder how many times Jesus passed by this lame man as He went into the temple. Since the man was carried there daily, I assume Jesus had gone by him many times. Yet even though He had many opportunities, Jesus did not stop and heal him. Perhaps He left this lame man just so the disciples could experience the thrill of ministry. Indeed, Jesus could take care of all the problems in the world, but He allows us to be a part of the miracles. Lord Jesus, I want to be a part of Your miracles today.
 
Today's Thought: God allows us to participate in His miracles.
 
.....................................
 
"[A certain lame man] who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms. And fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, 'Look at us.' So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them."
 
                                                                  Acts 3:3-5
 
In asking for alms, the man was expressing a felt need – for money. But he had a deeper need – healing. Peter did not give him what he wanted, which would not have changed his life, but instead ministered in a way that would impact his life forever. People around me daily present felt needs – whether for money, emotional support, or validation. How do I respond to them? Do I just meet their felt need, or do I give them something greater that will change their lives? If I only meet their felt need, they will remain a beggar tomorrow. All humanitarian programs will leave people in their needy state if their lives are not changed. What they need is new life.
 
Today's Thought: Beggars will remain beggars unless their lives are changed.
 
...................................
 
"Then Peter said, 'Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: IN the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.' "
 
                                                                      Acts 3:6
 
My resources are limited. I certainly don't have enough to meet all the needs I encounter. But I can give people Jesus. He can meet any need. I want to be like Peter, to boldly proclaim Jesus as the meeter of needs.
 
Today's Thought: My resources are limited; Jesus' resources are unlimited.
 
..................................
 
"And he [Peter] took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them – walking, leaping, and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God."
 
                                                                     Acts 3:7-9
 
It must have been a sight – this wild man jumping around and yelling at the top of his voice, "I'm healed!!!" He was not embarrassed nor ashamed to show public demonstration of what God had done for him. He had been lifted, healed, and his life changed by the goodness of God. He did not care what other people thought. So why am I so reticent to give public praise to God when Jesus has done so much for me? Am I afraid people will think I am crazy? So, why do I care what people think?
 
Today's Thought: The touch of God will cause a response.
 
...............................
 
"Now as the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the porch which is call Solomon's, greatly amazed. So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: 'Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?' "
 
                                                                               Acts 3:11-12
 
Peter was quick to deflect glory from himself to God. God alone deserves praise for any good thing that comes out of my ministry.
 
Today's Thought: To God be the glory!!