Engaged (Acts 2:14-16)

identify key words and phrases.

14 Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice, and proclaimed to them,
“Fellow Jews and all you residents of Jerusalem, let this be known to you,
and pay attention to my words.
15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it’s only nine in the morning.
16 On the contrary, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:”

Application Point:

engage with others and point them to Scripture.

Ask:

Highlight:

explain the significance of the hour and the identity of the prophet Joel.

By Jewish reckoning, this would have been the third hour of the day.
this was the Jewish hour for prayer, so drunkenness at that time would have been particularly frowned upon-
especially on a major festival day.
while the people were wrong, Peter used their misunderstanding as a springboard into his sermon.

Peter employed Scripture to set the stage for the message he was about to share.
Scripture is a powerful tool for getting to the heart of a spiritual challenge.

Key Person

Joel

During his sermon, Peter pointed the people to the prophet Joel to introduce his message.
Little is known about this Old Testament prophet, whose name means “Yah is God.”
Many scholars believe he probably lived in Jerusalem,
which is highlighted in his interest in the city and his consistent calls to proper worship among the people.
While scholars debate the date of Joel’s prophecies,
the unifying theme is a locust plague that is either literal or a symbol of a vast army that would come to destroy the land.

Whatever position one holds in terms of Joel’s date and meaning,
it is clear that Peter’s sermon in Acts 2 was based on an interpretation and application of God’s Word:
What was spoken.
Illustrations, stories, and testimonies can be useful tools in witnessing to the lost.
However, the surest way to communicate the gospel is to point people to Scripture.

Ask:

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