Invitation to Eternal Life: Difference between revisions

{{Top of Page}}

:''When the people heard this, they were deeply troubled and said to Peter and the other apostles, “What shall we do, brothers?”  

But Peter’s sermon, read in cold print, does not account for the fact that something vital happened to 3,000 people! What accounts for that is the action of the Holy Spirit.  

“They were deeply troubled...” (Acts 2:37). The men and women standing there and listening to an exposition of certain Old Testament Scriptures were in trouble. They were disturbed, and they cried out. This was the work of the Holy Spirit, and there would never have been a Christian church but for this. This is what makes her; this is what causes her to persist. This is the explanation of the revivals and reformations down through the centuries.

People may say, “But I’m living a good life, aren’t I? I’ve never committed adultery. I’ve never been drunk. I’ve never done any of these things. I really am trying to help people. I’m paying my full dues morally—what more do you want?” But the Holy Spirit shows them that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners and that the whole world is in a state of sin, and that includes them.

Not to accept Jesus is to reject Him, and to reject Him is to reject God. It is God, said Peter, who has “made … Jesus … both Lord and Christ.” The people of Jerusalem saw that by agreeing with the authorities, they had been fighting against God. Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and they had crucified Him. Jesus Christ is the greatest manifestation of God’s love, and they had said, “Crucify Him!” Jesus Christ is the very pivot and center of God’s eternal plan and purpose of world redemption, and they had rejected Him. They were suddenly awakened to this. They had shouted thoughtlessly, but now it was brought home to them, and they were made to think. And that, of course, leads to conviction, and conviction leads to fear.

Do you not hear the fear in the voices of those people of Jerusalem? “They were pricked in their heart, and said … Men and brethren, what shall we do?” This is not intellectual interest in Jesus, not a bandying about of opinions: “Well, indeed, I do think after all that He is a very good man who said some fine things, and He is a great leader, and we want more of that spirit.” No, no! They were aware that they were in trouble. They were “pricked in their heart.” They were convicted and afraid. Why? Because they had asked themselves certain questions. And this is how people become Christians.

Have you ever put these questions to yourselves? '''Have you ever asked, “Why is it that I have been so unconcerned about Jesus Christ?''' How long have I lived in this world? How much have I thought about Him? Has He been central in my thinking? Is my life dominated by the historical fact that nearly 2,000 years ago God sent His only Son into this world?” Have you stopped to ask, “Who was this Jesus? Why are the years numbered according to Him — Before Christ (B.C.), After Christ (A.D., Anno Domini, ‘year of our Lord’)?”

The Spirit makes you ask those questions, and they are painful. You are thinking now. Before you simply said, “There’s nothing in Christianity. It’s played itself out. Away with Him! He’s nobody. Get Him out of the way. Christianity is outmoded. He doesn’t count.” But now you say, “Had I been wiser, I would have been saying: Here is the truth. He is a fact. What does He mean? What is His relevance to me?”

The moment you ask yourself those questions, you will find the answers. You will say to yourself, “I’ve never thought about Him, and I’ve never seen my need of Him, for one reason only, and that is my ignorance — and first and foremost, my ignorance of God!” How often do we think of God? Where has the world come from? What keeps it going? What accounts for all its marvel and perfection? Is it all the result of chance?

{{col-begin}}

{{col-break}}

'''Bibles on the Internet:'''

{{col-end}}