Acts 2:14-41

Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It's only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

" 'In the last days, God says,

I will pour out my Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy,

your young men will see visions,

your old men will dream dreams.

Even on my servants, both men and women,

I will pour out my Spirit in those days,

and they will prophesy.

I will show wonders in the heaven above

and signs on the earth below,

blood and fire and billows of smoke.

The sun will be turned to darkness

and the moon to blood

before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.

And everyone who calls

on the name of the Lord will be saved.'

"Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. This man was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. David said about him:

" 'I saw the Lord always before me.

Because he is at my right hand,

I will not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;

my body also will live in hope,

because you will not abandon me to the grave,

nor will you let your Holy One see decay.

You have made known to me the paths of life;

you will fill me with joy in your presence.'

"Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay. God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,

" 'The Lord said to my Lord:

"Sit at my right hand

until I make your enemies

a footstool for your feet."

"Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."
When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?"
Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call."
With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation." Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

Okay, it's getting good! Peter gets up and tells the group that this is what Joel prophesied about in the OT, they aren't drunk!

Verse 17 says, In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people.

What that means is that the last days between the Old Law and the New Law. The old law is the law of the OT. The new law is what Jesus set forth. With Jesus we are covered by grace and the Holy Spirit intercedes for us. The old law is physical and the new law is spiritual. This day had been prophesied since Adam and Eve's time.

When he says that he will pour out my Spirit on all people that means that anyone can receive it.

I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below - he's talking about the wind and the flame that appeared when the Holy Spirit came.

The sun will be turned to darknessandn the moon to blood - this is what happened when Jesus died.

the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord - Jesus' resurrection

everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved - calling on the name of the Lord doesn't mean to pray and your saved it includes faith and responding to that faith by actions.

I'm gonna continue this another time.

Acts 2:1-13

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. Utterly amazed, they asked: "Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs-we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!" Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, "What does this mean?"
Some, however, made fun of them and said, "They have had too much wine."

Pentecost is the 50th day after the Sabbath of Passover Week. It is also called the Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Harvest and the day of first fruits. Passover is sometime in April, so you're looking at sometime in June for Pentecost.

The speaking of tongues they are talking about is explained further below when they say that each individual person hears them speaking in their own native tongue. And it was the Holy Spirit that let that happen. I think it's funny that so many people find it amazing that they are speaking in different languages and then the last verse says that some thought they were just drunk. Kind of like today, some people are amazed at what God does and other people just blow it off as coincedence or whatever.

Acts 1:12-26

Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day's walk from the city. When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.

In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty) and said, "Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through the mouth of David concerning Judas, who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus— he was one of our number and shared in this ministry."

(With the reward he got for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out. Everyone in Jerusalem heard about this, so they called that field in their language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)

"For," said Peter, "it is written in the book of Psalms,

" 'May his place be deserted;
let there be no one to dwell in it,' and,
" 'May another take his place of leadership.'

Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from John's baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection."

So they proposed two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. Then they prayed, "Lord, you know everyone's heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs." Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.

They are talking about Judas, who was the disciple that betrayed Jesus to the Roman guards. The verses they are talking about come from Psalms 69:25 and 109:8. They say that when he threw the 30 pieces of silver back at the priests that they used that money to buy the field where he died.

Basically what they did was just add another disciple to take the place of Judas.

Acts 1:1-11

I'm gonna start in Acts. The first four books of the New Testament are the stories of Jesus' life written by four different view points. We'll get back to them.

Acts 1:1-11

In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."
So when they met together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?"
He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."


My bible, which is the Zondervan NIV states that Luke is the author and it was probably written anywhere from 63 A.D. to 70.

The former book Luke is talking about is his gospel Luke which discusses the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.

The gift he is talking about is the Holy Spirit which will be given to the disciples later on in Acts.

Restoring the kingdom to Israel - The disciples always had a hard time believing that Jesus wasn't going to give Israel back to them. When he would talk about being King or Lord, they always thought that it would be because he overthrew the current government and took over but he was always talking about the Kingdom of Heaven - which was the spiritual kingdom, concerning our souls as opposed to anything physical they were going to be rewarded.

When he talks about them being witnesses, the disciples were the next step in the formation of the church here on Earth. The early disciples had a lot of the same miraculous powers as Jesus did.

The two men in white - common description of angels. They were telling the disciples that Jesus was going to appear again the same way he had left - through the clouds.

Background

When I was ready to learn about the bible, my Grandpa taught me verse by verse most of the New Testament at his kitchen table. We would skip back and forth and he would show how one verse led to another and tied yet another into it. I want other people to learn what he taught me.

I also want to give people the chance to actually learn the bible. Not what they think it says by people who twist it around to fit their own purposes or verses used out of context. If I'm confused I'm lucky enough to have three people in my life that I can go to. My grandpa who started really getting into the bible so that he could prove people wrong. But he learned a lot more than just how he could win. My father and mother in law are also people I turn to when I have questions. They've both gone to Sunset International Bible Institute in Lubbock, TX and my father in law is a preacher at a church in Spearman, TX. I trust them because they've learned on their own, they have delved into the Word and have created their own relationship with God from their beliefs, not what others have fed them.

And that is what I want for myself and for you if you have found this site. I want you to learn on your own. Pick up a bible and read it. Don't listen to people who have been hurt by people at church. Church should be where you go to worship God, to fellowship, where you can interact with other Christians and know you aren't alone in the world. But the meat of your knowledge needs to come from your personal studies and if you are lucky enough as I was to have a man with a lot of years of knowledge under his belt to help, you're already half way there.