As the church of Jesus Christ, everything we are and everything we do must be grounded in and focused upon the gospel. What Jesus accomplished for His people in His death, burial, resurrection, and exaltation is the hub around which all of the Christian life turns. The gospel is not just the baby steps of the Christian life. It is everything! We will see this demonstrated clearly in Peter’s second sermon (Acts 3:11-26). Peter stands before an amazed crowd of people in the Temple courts. They are amazed because Peter seemingly just healed a man who had been lame from birth, and now he was leaping, walking, and praising God. Peter will explain to them what this is all about, but instead of focusing on the man’s physical healing, Peter uses the man as an illustration of something much greater. Peter proclaims that Jesus is the glorified Messiah whom God, through Moses and the prophets, promised to sent to His people. He shows the people God’s salvation and calls them to turn to Jesus and receive true healing in His name.
As Peter begins explaining who healed this lame man, he will introduce Jesus by saying, "The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus..." (Acts 3:13). When Peter says "glorified his servant," he is referencing the fourth "servant song" in Isaiah. He is claiming Jesus is the suffering servant of Isa. 52:13-53:12. So in addition to reading Acts 3:11-26, I would encourage you to read Isa. 52:13-53:12 as well. This prophecy tells us how the Father "glorified his servant, Jesus."
Peter’s point is that Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s purposes in all of history. This is the moment to which all of Scripture has led. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation. There is no deeper theology and no higher spiritual level that being "in Christ."
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