What Shall We Do? (Acts 2:36-41)
Have you ever been cut to the heart because you heard the truth you have been denying? The Jewish people have condemned someone completely innocent, and, deep down, they knew it. They are the reason the Romans murdered Jesus. Pilate, the Roman governor, gave them a chance to overrule their religious leaders, but they refused. They freed an evil man instead. Now, they feel tremendous guilt and shame over what they have done. Imagine how that would feel.
What Shall We Do?
So the people ask the most crucial question, "Brothers, what shall we do?" Notice that this would have been the ideal time to speak the way many denominations speak today. He could have said, "You don't need to do anything. Jesus has already done everything for you. Just come, kneel, and pray with me." He tells them to do what he tells everyone to do to accept this salvation. Repent and be baptized.
Today we will spend a little extra time on these two actions so that everyone is clear on what is required for salvation. I don't want a single person to leave this room without fully understanding what God expects men to do to receive salvation. What does he mean when he says repent and be baptized.
Acts 2:36--41 (ESV) --- 36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” 37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” 40 And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” 41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.
Repent
First, let's consider the command to repent. What does that mean, and what does it not mean? Repentance is not the same as confession. Confession is what the Jews did when they said, "What shall we do?" They confessed that they believed Peter and were guilty in that one question, but they had not yet repented. Repentance is also not the same thing as saying we will change. Words can be empty and meaningless.
Repentance is a complete turnaround. It's a change in mind and heart that results in a lifestyle change. The rebellious heart has to become softened and open to change. Repentance is a commitment to stay that way, even when it hurts. It's not a commitment to stop doing one or two things wrong, but it's committing to change your life every day for the rest of your life. It's a commitment to do the right thing, even if it means your humiliation.
It's not easy to put away sin or to put on a new lifestyle. It takes sacrifice. Men who only live for themselves and their success have to give up themselves and their success. They have to start pursuing God and his glory first. That means they quit the job that takes them away from God and serving him. They find a job they can do while serving God. When their family makes them choose between themselves and God, they choose God while still loving their rebellious family. It means that hobbies get bumped down the list of required activities, and evangelism is always in your heart when you look at a lost soul.
Repentance is the decision to stop rejecting Christ and start trying to live as he lived. It's the hardest thing we can do and the bottleneck of salvation. Most people want to be saved without truly repenting, but God calls for all men everywhere to repent.
Baptism
The second action that Peter mentions for salvation is baptism. Baptism is to be immersed in water. Simple right? Between the two, I'd choose baptism any day of the week. But what's fascinating is that the Christian world around us has done some weird things with baptism. They have either over-emphasized it or under-emphasized it.
Over-Emphasizing
Those who over-emphasize baptism see baptism as this magic action that gets you into God's family. In doing this, they remove the importance of faith and submission in baptism altogether. It becomes a great way to get God off your back so you can go back to living how you want to. We see this in groups that baptize babies. Can babies repent and be baptized like those on Pentecost? Are they cut to the heart?
Those baptized must have faith in the work of God during baptism, and they must submit to the will of God for their lives. Babies and young children can't make that kind of commitment with that level of understanding. They aren't at an age where their sin is held to their account. Remember how Jesus felt about children. There is nothing preventing children from coming to him. All are innocent until they reach a point of understanding good and evil, just like Adam and Eve.
Over-emphasizing is rampant in our society. It can happen whenever we believe our goal is to dunk people in the water. Baptism does no good without the person being genuinely cut to the heart, repenting of their sins, and submitting to serve God for the rest of their lives. If we measure our success as a church by the number of baptisms we perform, we are over-emphasizing baptism.
Under-Emphasizing
Those who under-emphasize it rewrite this text. They make it say, "Repent and be baptized because forgiveness and the gift of the Holy Spirit have already been given to you." In this case, baptism is merely a formality. It's just something we do because we are told to do it. It has no real significance and can be discarded. What's interesting is that those who under-emphasize it are confused. They see the many explanations about baptism throughout the New Testament and say, "It's got to be important, but it's not necessary." Does that make sense to you? How many things are important but not necessary? That's an oxymoron.
If I tell my child to take a bath, it's automatically important because I have been given the command to do it. Is it necessary? The child might not think it's necessary. They might submit to my command and get wet but use no soap and refuse to scrub anything. They knew it was important to get a bath because I said to do it, but they did not care about the purpose. They did not believe it was necessary. God doesn't command us to do things without having a purpose. Like everything truly important, baptism is important and necessary for all believers after the day of Pentecost.
The Right Emphasis
We must have the proper emphasis when it comes to baptism. Baptism is not a magic pill that we can take to avoid repentance. Nor is it a silly thing we do that has no purpose. The images we find throughout the New Testament fill this act with meaning and purpose. Consider what the following verses tell us about baptism.
Galatians 3:26--29 (ESV) --- 26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.
This is where we become sons of God by putting on Christ. We do this through faith and receive the promise made to Abraham.
Romans 6:3--4 (ESV) --- 3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
This is where we are united with Christ in his death and resurrection. It is the point where we begin living for Jesus.
Colossians 2:11--14 (ESV) --- 11 In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. 13 And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.
Baptism is where we are circumcised and made alive. Notice the words he uses. He says this is "a circumcision made without hands" and "Through faith in the powerful working of God." This is why people think baptism is a magical get-out-of-jail-free card. The text clearly says that God is working in the baptism, but he only works if we have faith in his working and if we have submitted our hearts to him.
Acts 22:16 (ESV) --- 16 And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name.’
This is where Ananias told Paul to call on his name. Other texts like 1 Peter 3:21 indicate that baptism is where we cry out for God to give us a clean conscience. Someone might say that all of these are just pictures of what God has already done, but that's not the way they are written. They are written as though these events happened during baptism. They are directly connected.
Receive
After a sinner repents and is baptized, they receive two things: the forgiveness of their sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
The forgiveness of sins is not a one-time event. It doesn't mean we reset the sin counter and try to be righteous again. Forgiveness means a new relationship. Instead of being enemies with God, you have become his child. The prodigal son is the picture of forgiveness. It doesn't mean you won't make mistakes, but by having humility and seeking the relationship, you find continual forgiveness. The father wants to forgive. He wants to be patient with you as you struggle to overcome bad habits.
What about the gift of the Holy Spirit? The gift of the Holy Spirit is the gift of spiritual life and renewal. To understand it better, look at verse 39. We need to know the promises that God made throughout the Old Testament. I touched on that at the beginning of our study of Acts.
But maybe you read this a little differently. Is the "gift of the Holy Spirit" talking about receiving the indwelling of the Holy Spirit? Again, Christians have made a biblical idea into something else. This idea has mystical roots, and people who focus on this tend to rely on some magical feeling. That's not what this is talking about. It's about the promises God made in the Old Testament. One of those promises is that the Holy Spirit, God, and Jesus are with us in our daily walk. They want us to become lights that shine brightly for God's glory, and they help us do that, but they are not a force we need to feel to believe in. They do not promise to give us a still small voice or a strong convicting feeling about where we should go or what we should do. That's not part of the promise for when the Spirit is poured out on all flesh. Study your Bibles for yourself instead of believing the opinions of men.
This gift is the gift of making us a child of God and adding us to the body of Christ.
Ephesians 1:13--14 (ESV) --- 13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
Titus 3:4--7 (ESV) --- 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Application
If you understand all of this, what prevents you from calling on the name of the Lord? Why not admit that you are a sinner in need of salvation? God wants you to turn from your sins and live for him. He also calls for baptism. Baptism alone will not save you, but it is an essential part of the process. If you refuse to confess your sinfulness, repent of your sins, or be baptized, salvation is not available for you. You must look again at what God has done for you and learn to submit with all of your heart. Pride and rebellion have no place here.
Romans 6:4--7 (ESV) --- 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 7 For one who has died has been set free from sin.
We can be set free from sin and become able to walk in the newness of life. On that day, thousands began a new life in Christ. Why not you?