BEAUTY IN BETWEEN
Opening Prayer
Father, I come to you today, thanking you for all you provide; most of all, thank you for your loving presence that is always with me.
Read ACTS 2:14–21
Peter Addresses the Crowd
14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15 These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
17 “‘In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
your old men will dream dreams.
18 Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days,
and they will prophesy.
19 I will show wonders in the heavens above
and signs on the earth below,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
20 The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.
21 And everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved.’[a]
Footnotes
- Acts 2:21 Joel 2:28-32
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
‘I can’t believe this is finally happening!’ What long-awaited, painstakingly prepared events have you been present for? How did it feel to be there?Living 2,000 years later, it’s hard for us to imagine how seismic Peter’s explanation of events would have seemed to his audience of first-century Jews. Amazement, exhilaration, joy, awe, even fear—I’m sure a whole melting pot of emotions was present as they faced the first moments of a familiar prophecy being fulfilled. The crowd was surprised enough by what they saw and heard to suppose excessive alcohol consumption had been involved!
But Peter pointed to a passage from Joel (Joel 2:28–32) that foretold the start of a new age in the continuing story of salvation. It painted a picture of a time in which barriers of race, status, age, and gender, would be removed, a time when the mind of God would be made known as people prophesied in the power of the Spirit. It would be a time when creation would creak in anticipation of Jesus’ coming again, and a time when salvation would be readily accessible to all who would call on him. It’s the time between the ascension and return of Jesus, and it is filled with the beauty of divisions reconciled, deepening revelation, and divine rescue. Best of all, we live through its continuing unfolding today!
Apply
Which aspect of this in-between time do you most long to see manifest in and through your life—reconciliation, revelation, or rescue?
Closing prayer
Lord God, fill me afresh with your Spirit so that I can share your plan of salvation and your provision in Jesus.
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