Last week, I introduced you to the fact that Christopher is learning how to drive. And now it’s like, I don’t get to drive very much, because almost everywhere I go, I have a driver. Somebody said to me last week, ooh, you have an Uber driver everywhere you go.
And so he’s been learning, and in driver’s ed, they said something that really struck a chord with me. They taught him, and he’s learning, to be a defensive driver. Who was ever taught to be a defensive driver? Who remains to this day as a defensive driver? We go out and we drive, and we talk about defensive driving.
I didn’t take driver’s ed. Some of you are going, now I understand. My parents taught me how to drive, and they really talked to me about being a defensive driver.
And what that means is, when you drive, it’s not just about you. You have to be aware. You have to be alert.
You have to see when cars are coming the other way. You have to be ready. If you’re on a four-lane road, and you have two lanes that are both headed east, and you’re in the left lane, and you put your right turn signal on, what do you have to look for? People behind you, and then what do you do? Change lanes.
Now, except on the Kansas City, Missouri side, when you put that right blinker on, that tells them to speed up and stop you from getting in your lane. We were, Christopher was driving, we were coming east on 151st Street, which is a pretty busy street, but we were in the neighborhood section. And all of a sudden, he looks ahead about a block, and he sees a car back behind the stop sign, and he says, how are they going to see anybody coming when they’re so far back? And then they pulled right out in front of us.
And he put on the brakes because he saw that coming, and he slowed down, and he said, Dad, did I do a good job? And I said, yeah, but I probably would have kept accelerating, and then late on, oh no, you did a good job. Do it just like that. Sometimes we’re not defensive drivers.
Sometimes we are, and we’re looking for things. What we have to learn in life, too, especially with walking with Jesus, as we grow up, we learn more and more that life isn’t all about us. When the Holy Spirit gives us gifts of the Spirit and fruit of the Spirit, is that all for us? It’s not all about us.
It’s to bless others with them. It’s to share them with others. God empowers us just not for our own comfort or our own pride or our own success, but to empower others and to see great things that come from the Holy Spirit through us into others.
As we continue through Peter’s sermon in Acts 2, Peter even tells us that if you are a king, and the greatest king in Israel’s history, it’s not really just about you. That’s tough to take sometimes when you’re in leadership or in life, that it’s not just about us, that we’ve got to be aware of the needs of others around us. And it’s not like being defensive as in worrying about who’s going to hurt our feelings.
It’s about being aware and knowing that it’s not all about us and that we were called to be a blessing to others. How many of you have already lost? Our scripture today continues in Acts 2. This is the second part of Peter’s sermon where he’s talking about David, who was the greatest king in Israel’s history. But he wasn’t the one.
Will you stand as you’re able? For David says concerning him, I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken. Therefore my heart was glad and my tongue rejoiced. My flesh also will dwell in hope, for you will not abandon my soul to Hades or let your Holy One see corruption.
You have made known to me the path of life. You will make me full of gladness with your presence. Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried and his tomb is with us to this day.
Being therefore a prophet and knowing that God had swore with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on the throne, he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the cross, that he was not abandoned to Hades nor his flesh to see corruption. This Jesus God raised up, and of that we are all witnesses. Therefore having exalted at the right hand of God, having received for the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.
For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, the Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool. Let all the house of Israel therefore now for certain that God, know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucify. The word of God inspired by God for the people of God.
Thanks be to God. Amen, you may be seated. Now remember this is right after Pentecost when the Holy Spirit poured out and all the disciples were praising God and the people heard this loud noise of people praising God really loudly like when cars drive by on Nol and we’re worshiping on Sunday, they hear the loud noises of us praising God really loudly and they want to stop and see what’s going on so the people came and they stopped and when they got there they heard the Holy Spirit speaking through them praising God in their own languages speaking of the great things God had always done and Peter said all of us are witnesses to Jesus being crucified and being raised from the dead so all of those who received the Holy Spirit at the outpouring at Pentecost before we got here were witnesses of the resurrection of Jesus Christ now why is Peter speaking about the resurrection at Pentecost? You think one of the disciples went up and tugged on his robe and said Peter it’s not Easter today is Pentecost well they didn’t have the word Easter it’s not resurrection day today is Pentecost today is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit what does one have to do with the other? Now even those first disciples who were apostles meaning they saw the living Jesus after the resurrection walking around in his new body that God had given him that could somehow walk through walls and eat fish and be present and talk to the disciples and walk with them and be there and he in this new body they witnessed it and they all were a part of that outpouring but one of the first things Peter says is Peter doesn’t even say this Luke tells us that they spoke in other languages so people could understand them since they were coming from like 14 or 15 different places they understood in their own language so when the Holy Spirit gave them the gift which was so cool to be able to speak in these earthly languages they probably didn’t even understand what they were saying it probably sounded like battling to them but others could hear it in their language meaning the outpouring of the Holy Spirit was not just for them and their edification immediately the outpouring of the Holy Spirit was for those who came to see what was going on meaning when God pours out the Holy Spirit it’s not just for us and not just for us to say hey that was a cool experience or that really warmed my heart or that really felt good it’s got a whole other layer to it where when we give our lives to Jesus and have become more Christ-like have the love of God in us it becomes less and less about us and more and more about God which means we grow in our love for our neighbor we grow in wanting others to know about Jesus the point that Peter is making to them from Psalm 16 that you heard Deacon Dana read earlier it’s just more fun to say Deacon Dana was that he says David says you will not abandon my soul to Hades or let your Holy One see corruption Peter goes on to explain this is not really my sermon this is Peter’s sermon so if you have issues take it up with Peter someday Peter says this is obviously not about David because we know David died right? David was buried and his tomb is still there if you really wanted to be weird about it you could go in the tomb and find his bones but David nonetheless says you will not abandon my soul to Hades or let your Holy One see corruption he’s saying the prophecy is not about David who is the prophecy about? Jesus now in the Bible there are other prophecies that connect to this that Peter is looking at one of which says there will always be someone in your line in your genetic line on the throne meaning the prophecy is about who the prophecy is about the line of Judah someone in the line of Judah from the family of David will be on the throne forever and Jesus fulfilling that prophecy was in the line of David although he was great although he was a king he was imperfect and everything wasn’t about him and even Jesus who was perfect if everything was about him he’d be still king on earth but he gave everything for us Peter uses the word that God made him both Lord and Christ this Jesus who you crucify so the prophecy is about someone in the line of David so remember David who had the Holy Spirit who was blessed with the Holy Spirit who was lifted by the Holy Spirit who prophesied by the Holy Spirit who went to war by the Holy Spirit who spoke by the Holy Spirit the prophecy was not about him it was about someone down the line now for us when we have the Holy Spirit and we do certain things and we talk to others and we share with others and we preach how many times have we shared with Jesus about someone else where they just don’t immediately say you’re right I’m going to accept Jesus as my Savior right now thanks for sharing that it’s not about us sometimes it’s about planting the seed and maybe what we did will become a part of that maybe they just let the door open a little bit but for David he was about way down the line and things he did carried all the way through to Jesus at this point the Lion of Judah would sit on the throne forever so it was a descendant of David that he was talking about not about David himself now if we look at the beginning of the point of Pentecost this whole series about what’s the point of Pentecost Peter goes through these three things resurrection exalted to the throne of God and the Holy Spirit one thing I love that Peter repeats in verse 32 he says this Jesus and in verse 36 he said this Jesus whom you crucified now if you look at the Jesus whom you crucified you have to look at Jesus as having a name that was pretty popular back in the days I was just talking to another guy who works at a non-profit this week and his name was Eric and you know when you meet someone with your same name Eric! nice to meet you Eric I’m Eric and so you go man I’m not going to forget that name like somebody’s middle name not going to forget that and we were talking about how it’s not popular anymore well you know in the western culture a lot of people aren’t named Jesus now in Spanish cultures they’re fine to name people Jesus which is exactly the same as Jesus but we don’t but in Jesus’ day you have to remember there are a lot of Jesus’s in fact when it comes to the crucifixion there was another Jesus the people chose over Jesus of Nazareth can you believe they would choose the wrong Jesus? this Jesus was named Jesus Moravius one of the gospels tells us his first name was Jesus now Moravius was he a holy one? no he was a criminal and when Pilate said you can free one of these guys who do you choose? he tried to even Pilate who didn’t know Jesus who was just really sick of the Jews anyway he tried to give them an easy out here is a criminal and here is this man who is humble and gentle right here before you which one should we free today? Moravius now it’s easy to look at them and judge them and say that was a really silly thing to do but when we choose the wrong Jesus when we choose other idols when we choose other things in our lives and one of the greatest idols we can choose is whom? ourselves when we choose us over God and God’s plans and God’s plans work through us and bless others and share the gospel with others and bring peace to others when we choose to do that we’re choosing another Jesus we’re choosing the wrong one and we’re forgetting about the point of Pentecost the point of Pentecost is to bring us into the presence of God when David is talking David who was anointed by the Holy Spirit he said I saw the Lord always before me always in the presence of God always there and then the text ends in verse 28 it says you will make me full of gladness with your presence Peter is saying the Holy Spirit comes down and gives us the presence of God that deposit of heaven that lifts us up and strengthens us the beginning of Pentecost is first the resurrection of Jesus Christ Peter says this one whom you crucified God by his perfect foreknowledge raised him from the dead raised him to life this is the Jesus we are called to trust in and he not only raised him and he not only walked on the earth but he sent him to heaven and he sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty and he says these words in Psalm 110 David also said the Lord said to my Lord isn’t that a strange thing when David was talking about the Lord who do you think he was talking about God the Father and when he says my Lord he’s talking about Jesus I mean because he was filled with the Holy Spirit he was even pointed to God through Jesus Christ at that time the Lord said to my Lord sit at my right hand until I make footstools of your enemies who sits at the right hand of God the Father Jesus David was not talking about himself unless he’s like Bob Dolan talks in the third person my Lord I need to know what to do well let me tell you what to do David was talking about Jesus my Lord he’s the one who is exalted that sits at the right hand of God the Father and Jesus is the one who is the Lord what that means is the resurrection of Jesus Christ means not only that Jesus will rise from the dead or that Jesus rose from the dead but that we will also rise from the dead but there’s another layer of this with Pentecost not only do we rise from the dead but we rise now all of our guilt and our shame and our hurt and our sin and the way we have been brought down in our lives we rise from that right now the Holy Spirit gives us the power to overcome all that to have the power to work through all that and we rise today Romans 10 Romans 10 Paul sums up a lot of what we have here he said but what does it say the word is near you, the word is in your heart that is the word of faith we proclaim because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead you will be saved for with the heart one believes and is justified and with the mouth one confesses and is saved for the scripture says everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame at that point that we receive Jesus what else do we receive when we receive Jesus what else comes in our heart who else the Holy Spirit the point of Pentecost the connection between the resurrection of Jesus is that for us that if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord then we can say he is my Lord if you confess out loud with our mouths that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that means you don’t just intellectually agree with it that means it changes you from within if you believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead you will be saved and part of that salvation brings with it the Holy Spirit that we have to let more and more of the Holy Spirit work within us strengthen us lift us up and once we rise we never go down again even when the world says sit down stop talking about Jesus sit down I accuse you because you are a sinner sit down you don’t deserve to stand but when Jesus tells us to rise up we are risen with him and we never go back we trust in God we don’t trust in idols or ourselves we trust in God the point of Pentecost with the resurrection is our salvation the filling of the Spirit and rising with Jesus this Jesus whom we trust let’s pray almighty God thank you so much for Jesus thank you for salvation thank you God for the Holy Spirit the point of Pentecost says that we can be in your presence we just think about that for a second it’s so amazing in Jesus we rise up we will rise up on the day of resurrection but today when we have Christ in our hearts we rise up from all those things that have knocked us down in life we rise up and realize that it’s about you it’s not about us it’s about you God and so we praise you in Jesus name amen.