Acts 1-3 - Repent

The Promise of the Holy Spirit

Act 1:8 LSB - [8] but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to THE END OF THE EARTH."

The Greek word used here for witness is martys (from which we get "martyr"), meaning a legal or personal witness—someone who testifies to what they have seen, heard, and personally experienced.

Scripture and historical theology outline several key ways a Christian acts as Jesus' witness:

1. Empowered by the Holy Spirit (The Source) A believer cannot witness effectively through human effort alone. As Jesus emphasized in Acts 1:8 LSB, witnessing begins with the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit, who grants boldness, guidance, spiritual gifts, and spiritual fruit to testify to Christ.

2. Proclaiming the Gospel (Verbal Testimony) To be a witness requires spoken or written communication. A Christian testifies to:

• The Person and Work of Christ: Proclaiming His life, sacrificial death on the cross, physical resurrection, and lordship.

• Personal Experience: Sharing how Christ has transformed their own life, brought forgiveness, and given hope.

3. Living a Holy and Loving Life (Moral & Relational Testimony) Verbal witness is supported by a transformed character:

• Love for Others: Jesus noted that people would know His disciples by their love for one another (John 13:35 LSB).

• Good Deeds: Living in a way that brings glory to God so others see Christ through ethical living, integrity, and mercy (Matthew 5:16 LSB).

4. Enduring Suffering and Rejection (Faithful Endurance) Because martys carries the weight of sacrifice, being a witness often involves being willing to face ridicule, opposition, or persecution for holding fast to the truth of Christ without backing down.

5. Reaching Expanding Circles (The Scope) Jesus outlined a geographic strategy that applies spiritually and practically to every believer:

• Jerusalem: One's immediate sphere (family, friends, workplace, local community).

• Judea & Samaria: Expanding into neighboring regions and cross-cultural contexts (including people who are different or historically alienated).

• End of the Earth: Supporting or participating in global missions to unreached peoples.

 

The Ascension

Act 1:9 LSB - [9] And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.

Act 1:11 LSB - [11] They also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven."

Matthias Chosen to Replace Judas

Act 1:14 LSB - [14] These all with one accord were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with [the] women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and His brothers.

Act 1:26 LSB - [26] And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias; and he was added to the eleven apostles. 

The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost

Act 2:4 LSB - [4] And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.

Act 2:11 LSB - [11] Cretans and Arabs--we hear them in our [own] tongues speaking of the mighty deeds of God."

Peter’s Sermon at Pentecost

Act 2:19-21 LSB - 

[19] 'AND I WILL PUT WONDERS IN THE SKY ABOVE AND SIGNS ON THE EARTH BELOW, BLOOD, AND FIRE, AND VAPOR OF SMOKE. 

[20] 'THE SUN WILL BE TURNED INTO DARKNESS AND THE MOON INTO BLOOD, BEFORE THE GREAT AND AWESOME DAY OF THE LORD COMES. 

[21] 'AND IT WILL BE THAT EVERYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.'

Act 2:32-36 LSB -
[32] "This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.
[33] "Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured out this which you both see and hear.
[34] "For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says: 'THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, "SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND,
[35] UNTIL I PUT YOUR ENEMIES AS A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET."'
[36] "Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ--this Jesus whom you crucified."

About Three Thousand Souls Saved

Act 2:37-38 LSB - 

[37] Now when they heard [this], they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men, brothers, what should we do?" 

[38] And Peter [said] to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

A Far-reaching Promise by Spurgeon

“The old-fashioned grace of repentance is not to be dispensed with; there must be sorrow for sin; there must be ‘a broken and a contrite heart.’ This, God will not despise; but a ‘conversion’ which does not produce this result, God will not accept as genuine.” 

Act 2:42 LSB - [42] And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers.

The Lame Beggar Healed

Act 3:6-7 LSB - [6] But Peter said, "I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene--walk!" [7] And seizing him by the right hand, he raised him up; and immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened.

Peter’s Sermon in Solomon’s Portico

Act 3:19 LSB - [19] "Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord;