The Establishment of the Church

In our last lesson we observed from Isaiah 2:2,3; Joel 2:28,29; and Daniel 2:44 that the Lord’s kingdom (or church) would be established in the last days, in Jerusalem, at the coming of the Spirit, that all nations would flow into it, and that it would stand forever. Then Christ promised in Matthew 16:18; Mark 9:1; and Luke 24:46-49 that he would build his church, that it would come with power, and that repentance and remission of sins would be preached in his name among all nations. Now by turning to Acts 2 we will discover that in this chapter alone all of these prophecies were fulfilled and all of these promises were kept.

As we read Acts 2 we find that the Apostles were in the city of Jerusalem at that time:

  • “When the Day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language” (Acts 2:1-6).

The record continues to tell of the many nations that were represented,

  • “So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, whatever could this mean? Others mocking said, they are full of new wine. But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 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 of 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 it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Acts 2:12-17,21).

After showing that all that was happening was in fulfillment of the prophecies of old, Peter launches into his sermon. He shows how that Jesus was a man approved of God among them by miracles and wonders and signs which God did by him in their midst. Next he tells how that Christ had been taken and delivered up to the counsel and by wicked hands had been crucified and slain. Then he points out that God had raised him up, having loosed the pains of death. To convince his audience of this he quoted David to show that Christ lived, died, had been buried and resurrected, and had then ascended into heaven to sit upon the throne at the right hand of God.

Continuing, he said,

  • “This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear. For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: The Lord said to my Lord, sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool. Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both U)rd and Christ. 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? Then Peter said to them, Repent and let every one of van be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and ye 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 many as the Lord our God will call. 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. . .. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved” (Acts 2:32-41,47).

In the foregoing passage of scripture the Lord’s church was established. You will notice that all of it took place in Jerusalem. The power of the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Apostles. What took place was in fulfillment of the prophecies of old. Peter specifically said, “But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel” (Acts 2:16), so there can be no doubt about this.

Furthermore, since the prophets had said these things would happen in the last days, and since Peter said it was occurring as the prophet had said it would, then the church was established in the last days. All nations were present on that day as repentance and remission of sins were preached, and about 3000 were obedient, were saved, and added to the church.

Therefore, Christ established the church in Jerusalem in A.D. 33 and it has been in existence ever since.

Questions

Please tell us who said it:

1. Who said he would build his church?.

2. Who said, “And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh”?

3. Who said, “The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand”?.

Who said, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins”?

Who said, “Save yourselves from this untoward generation” ?

Please give the prophecies:

1. When was the Lord’s kingdom to be established?

2. In what city would it be established?

3. How many would flow into it?

4. With what would it come?

5. How long would it stand?

Please give the promises:

1. Who would build the church?

2 With what would it come?

3. What would be preached?

4. Among how many nations would it be preached?

In whose name would these things be preached?

Please answer these questions from Acts 2:

1. Who received the Spirit?

What were the signs of His presence?

How did Peter convince the people that Christ was the Son of God?

What question did the people ask? . And what was the answer given?

Who added the saved to the church? .

Please define:

1. Church

2. Prophecy

3. Pentecost

4. Repentance

5. Baptism

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This article is from “The Church of the Bible” by J.C. Choate Publications

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