New Repentance

Oh no, what have I done?

In the classic 2002 movie, Spider-Man,

the young Spider-Man has a chance to stop a thief,

but instead chooses to let him go.

He lets him get away only for that thief to end up killing his uncle.

I'm sorry if I've spoiled the movie for you, but the movie's 18 years old, it's okay.

Spider-Man has this moment when he realizes,

oh no, what have I done?

And for the rest of his life, it is shaped by his guilt,

trying to make up for this mistake that cost his uncle's life,

trying to deal with his sin, trying to find redemption.

His whole superhero future is because he is trying to pay the cost of his past sins.

Have you felt that before?

Not the being bitten by a radioactive spider part,

but that gut-wrenching feeling of realizing that you are at fault.

You've let a friend down.

You've been responsible for hurting a person close to you.

And then thinking, how do I fix this?

How do I make amends for my mistake?

Like, you know, I've let my kids down, so I'm going to take them some sliced fruit.

I'm going to, oh, let's go to Macca's kids.

I'm going to buy her flowers.

I'm going to buy her jewelry.

So when I go and say, sorry, I've got something to give her,

so that she'll actually forgive me.

When it comes to our relationship with God,

what happens when we realize what we have done to God?

That we are responsible for the death of his son,

for the murder of God himself.

Is it just enough for us to say sorry?

The great reformer, Martin Luther,

was famously so worried about his guilt and his death

that he became a monk.

Is this what we should do?

We should all, you know, just enter ministry

so we can somehow pay for our sins.

Today we are continuing in our series on the book of Acts,

seeing what living in the new world looks like.

And today we see what apology is.

We see a new repentance.

The people in Jerusalem realize what they have done to Jesus

and they are cut to the heart.

And we see what it means to repent,

to say sorry and to be forgiven.

Today we'll see what to do when we have that,

oh no, what have I done moment.

And we'll be reminded what it means to repent

and how wonderful it is to have a God

who deals with our sin once and for all.

We're going to be three points this morning.

The first is seeing the requirements for repentance.

So the disciples have done what Jesus told them to do

in Acts chapter one.

They were told to wait in Jerusalem until Pentecost.

And they've done that.

Pentecost means 50.

And so Pentecost is 50 days after Passover,

a famous Jewish festival, Passover,

when they remembered what God did passing over their sins.

50 days after that is 7 times 7 plus 1,

which is where they get 50, the Pentecost from.

And so we see what happens on this day.

Acts chapter 2, verse 2.

Acts 2:2

Suddenly, a sound like the blowing of a violent wind

came from heaven and filled the whole house

where they were sitting.

They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated

and came to rest on each of them.

All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit

and began to speak in other tongues

as the Spirit enabled them.

This is a massive, dramatic moment

in the history of the church.

This was not just a simple breeze

that blew through the house,

but it is a violent wind.

In the Old Testament,

the word for the Spirit and wind

are the same word.

It's ruach.

It's the same word.

And so we see in the Old Testament

that God made Adam come to life

by breathing into him.

And this rushing wind

is God's life-giving Spirit

coming to the apostles.

We see tongues of fire

coming to rest on these men.

And again, fire is a common image of God.

You only have to think back to, you know,

Moses and the burning bush.

And so the Holy Spirit

comes upon these men

so that they could be

about God's mission.

Last week with Steve,

in chapter 1,

we saw that Jesus was sending

his disciples,

his apostles,

out into the world.

To Jerusalem,

Judea,

Samaria,

and to the ends of the earth.

But he wasn't going to send them out

unprepared or unequipped.

They would have the Holy Spirit.

They were a witness

to what they had seen

about Jesus,

equipped to share the good news

to the ends of the earth.

And the Holy Spirit fills them here

so that they begin

to speak in other languages.

And I love this part of the Bible.

If you've heard me speak

about this kind of thing before,

I've prayed for this

because I really want to be able

to speak Mandarin Chinese.

And learning it takes time.

And I really wish

that had happened to me.

But here it happens.

God miraculously gifts these people

so that they can speak

other languages.

And they're speaking

about God's mighty deeds.

And they're making such a commotion

about God in other languages

that people around them

hear and gather.

Verse 5.

Now, they were staying in Jerusalem

God-fearing Jews

from every nation under heaven.

When they heard this sound,

a crowd came together

in bewilderment

because each one heard

their own language being spoken.

Utterly amazed,

they asked,

aren't all these

who are speaking Galileans?

Luke, the author,

is making a real point

in verse 5

explaining that there were

God-fearing Jews

from every nation

under heaven

in Jerusalem.

They were there

because of the religious festivals,

Passover,

and then Pentecost.

And the story

of the Old Testament

from the Tower of Babel

all of the way through

to their exile

had been a history

of disobedience.

They disobeyed God

over and over.

And he scattered them

at the Tower of Babel.

He sent them into exile

in their history.

Those who should have been

living in the promised land

had been spread

across the known world.

They've grown up

in foreign countries

speaking languages

not their own,

but they are all gathered

for Pentecost

and for Passover.

And God uses

his disciples

to speak to his

scattered people

who have gathered

for this moment.

The Holy Spirit

brings unity

where there was division.

The list of people

that had gathered

was impressive.

Verse 9.

Parthians, Medes,

Elamites,

residents of Mesopotamia,

Judea, Cappadocia,

Pontus, Asia,

Phrygia, Pamphylia,

Egypt,

parts of Libya

near Cyrene,

visitors from Rome,

both Jews and converts,

Cretans and Arabs.

We hear them

declaring the wonders

of God

in our own language.

Have you ever had

that feeling

when you're on

holidays overseas

if you can remember

being what overseas

is like?

And you have this moment

in a non-English

speaking country

if that's your

first language

where you don't

understand

what everyone's

saying around you.

It feels very foreign

because it is.

And then off in the distance

you hear someone

speaking your language.

You hear, you know,

someone speaking English

if you're in a non-English

speaking country

and it's just like,

oh,

they will understand me.

They know

what it is like.

And there's just

a feeling of home

and resonance.

I can imagine

that for these people.

These Jews

whose first language

is not

the local language.

But now

they are hearing

the good news

of God

in their

own language.

Some

just think

that they were drunk.

But Peter

gets up

and he speaks.

Peter,

who had been

very fearful,

who had

run

at the first

side of opposition,

the Holy Spirit

not only

has enabled

him to speak

in other languages,

the Holy Spirit

fills Peter

and is changing him

from being

someone who

was fearful

and stuttering

to now

someone who

is able to

get up in front

of a crowd

and preach.

And he explains

what is going on.

They're not drunk,

it's nine o'clock

in the morning,

but this

is what

was prophesied

long ago.

What is happening

right now

we have been

waiting for

for years

and years.

And he takes

them

step by step

to see

who Jesus is.

And he quotes

from the prophet

Joel

and from King

David.

From Joel,

in the last days

God says,

I will pour

my spirit out

on all

people.

God

giving the

Holy Spirit

to all

people.

Again,

this is an

amazing

dramatic

shift

from the

Old Testament

because

previously

God's

Holy Spirit

would come

upon kings

and prophets

and a select

few.

But now

the Spirit

is given

to young,

to old,

to male,

to female.

Peter is

showing them

in this

first step

that Joel

promised that

God would

pour out

the Spirit.

And that is

exactly what's

happening.

Not only that,

King David

said that they

should expect

someone better

than King

David himself,

someone who

would not be

abandoned to

the realm

of the dead,

whose body

would not

see decay.

And that's

not David.

Verse 29,

fellow Israelites,

I can confidently

tell you that

the patriarch

David died

and he was

buried and

his tomb

is here to

this day.

Seeing what

was to come,

he spoke of

the resurrection

of the Messiah,

that he was

not abandoned

to the realm

of the dead,

nor did his

body see

decay.

God has

raised this

Jesus to

life and

we are all

witnesses of

it.

Joel prophesied

that the Spirit

would come on

all people and

you are seeing

it.

David knew

that the Lord

and Messiah

would die

but not see

decay and

we have seen

it, the

apostles have

seen it.

And then

Peter gets

to the point,

verse 36,

therefore,

let all

Israel be

assured of

this,

God has

made this

Jesus whom

you crucified,

both Lord

and Messiah,

the one

you crucified.

He is the

Lord and

he is the

Messiah.

And the

crowd have

that,

oh no,

what have

we done

moment.

that painful,

gut-wrenching,

heart-cutting

moment when

they realised

that they

killed God.

Verse 37,

when the

people heard

this,

they were

cut to the

heart and

said to

Peter and

the other

apostles,

brothers,

what should

we do?

That phrase

is so

painful,

cut to the

heart,

what do

we do?

We killed

him.

The one

that we

have been

waiting for,

God's

chosen one,

the Lord

who would

save us

and we

killed him.

What do

we do?

I can

imagine

their minds

spinning with

options of

what they

could do.

Maybe it's

just the

Aussie male

dad in

me.

I can

fix it.

I see

one of my

kids with

a toy that's

not a little

bit broken,

pass it to

me, I'll

fix it.

Gaffer tape,

hot glue,

whatever it

takes, I

will fix it.

I can

imagine that

feeling in

the crowd.

Surely

there's

something we

can do.

God sent

him back,

we'll love

him this

time.

We'll

take care of

him, we

promise.

We'll

give more

money to

the synagogue,

we'll give

more sacrifices.

We've

stuffed up,

but surely

we can earn

your forgiveness.

38,

verse 38,

Peter replied,

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.

Repent,

turn away

from your

sin, be

baptized, be

washed clean

in the name

of Jesus

Christ, because

this Jesus,

he is still

working now.

Your sins

will be

forgiven, they

will be

wiped out,

and you

will receive

the Holy

Spirit.

No longer

is God

going to

dwell in

the temple,

but in

his people,

they will

be the

temple.

You can

have a

gift.

And that

day, about

3,000 people

were added to

their number.

This group

started out

divided by

language and

city of

origin, but

after they

had repented

and become

part of God's

family, they

were all united

together.

Verse 44,

all the

believers were

together and

had everything

in common.

And twice it

mentions that

they were

breaking bread

together.

God's Spirit

has come, the

gospel has

gone out,

thousands of

people have

been cut to

the heart,

they have

repented and

been baptized,

and now they

have God's

new church.

There is

nothing that

they could do

to make up for

their sins,

but forgiveness

is offered,

and they

have a gift

given.

The Holy

Spirit, God

himself would

dwell in

them.

No one

could have

expected that,

to go from

that gut-wrenching

moment of

realization of

what have I

done, to be

told that they

are forgiven,

and they're

getting a gift

instead.

This is

wonderful joy,

this is

amazing freedom.

We see this

structure in

chapter 2,

where God

works a

miracle.

Somebody

preaches the

gospel, and

then thousands

get saved.

It is the

same that

happens in

chapter 3.

A miracle

happens, Peter

preaches the

gospel, and we

see thousands

get saved.

In chapter 3,

the miracle is

a lame man

being healed.

This is our

second point

today, as

we see the

freedom that

comes from

repentance.

One day,

Peter, along

with John, was

heading to the

temple, and

there was a

lame man

begging.

Expecting to

get money,

verse 6,

Peter said,

silver or

gold I do

not have, but

what I do

have I give

you.

In the name

of Jesus

Christ of

Nazareth,

walk.

Taking him

by the right

hand, he

helped him

up, and

instantly the

man's feet

and ankles

became strong.

He jumped

to his feet

and began

to walk.

Then he

went with

them into

the temple

courts, walking

and praising

God.

The people

see the man

jumping and

praising, and

they rush to

Peter and

John.

And again,

Peter gives

context.

He explains,

he preaches

about what God

is doing in

their midst.

God

is doing in

the name of

Jesus.

Why do you

stare at us as if by

our own power or

our godliness we had

made this man walk?

The God of Abraham,

Isaac, and Jacob, the

God of our fathers has

glorified his servant

Jesus.

Verse 15,

you killed the author

of life, but God

raised him from the

dead.

We are witness of

this.

By faith in the

name of Jesus, this

man whom you see and

know has been made

strong.

It is Jesus' name and

the faith that comes

through him that has

completely healed him,

as you can all see.

And again, Peter gets

to the point.

He doesn't just talk

about God just to

talk about him, but

talks about him,

theologizes about him

for the sake of

people's lives.

Verse 19,

repent and turn to

God.

So that your sins

may be wiped out,

that times of

refreshing may come

from the Lord.

This is a wonderful

promise.

Turn to God,

repent.

Your sin will be

dealt with so that

you can have times

of refreshing.

The healing of the

lame man here is

like a physical

illustration of

repentance.

I don't think it's

by coincidence that

coincidence that

this story is in

the middle of

Peter preaching

twice about

repentance.

God's spirit

works in Jesus'

name to set

enslaved people

free.

The lame man was

enslaved to a

broken body and

when he is set

free, his change

is wonderful.

He is jumping for

joy.

He is praising

God.

Peter says,

you have killed

the author of

life, but you

can be free.

You can be free

as this man here

jumping with joy,

so repent.

And at the start

of chapter 4,

which we'll look at

next week,

again, we see

thousands of

people are saved.

in chapter 2

and 3,

we've been given

a picture of

what the new

repentance looks

like, that

comes from the

death, the

resurrection, and

the ascension of

Jesus.

Our repentance

is based not on

what we offer, but

on the completed

works of Jesus.

And we can jump,

we can praise,

and we can be

refreshed,

because our God

forgives us.

There are four

ways that this

helps us to think

through what our

repentance is.

This is our third

point today, what

repentance is, what

it actually looks

like.

So that's the first

of the four things.

We're going to see

four things about

what repentance

looks like.

The first is what

it actually looks

like.

The second, what

the marks of a

repentant person

are.

Third, the

challenges to

repentance.

And the fourth,

the joy from

repentance.

repentance.

Now, if you

don't know Jesus

yet, let me

encourage you to

be reflecting on

the burden of

carrying our own

sin.

Because what God

offers us is joy,

and it is

refreshing.

And all he asks

us to do is to

repent and turn

to him.

So firstly, what

does repentance

look like?

Well, it's not

just saying

sorry.

But repentance

is rooted in an

understanding of

how sinful we

are, of our

actions, our

emotions, our

thoughts, our

beliefs, and our

way of life.

Repentance is

where we have a

high view of

God, where we

see that he is

the one who

dictates what

the best life

is.

and when we

see that our

life doesn't

match what he

would have for

us.

A life of

repentance begins

with that gut

wrenching,

heart cutting

recognition of

having defied

God by choosing

what is wrong

and hurtful to

others, to

ourselves, and

to God.

A life of

repentance is

where we

continually bring

our life before

God in his

word, convicted

by the Holy

Spirit, and

where we will

continually have

those, oh

no, what have

I done moments.

We will see,

ah, this part

of my life needs

to change.

That action, that

thought, those

desires don't

actually line up

with God's plan

for my life.

Secondly, the

marks of a

repentant person.

we've seen some

of the marks of

repentant people

in the passage

this morning.

We see people

responding to

Peter's teaching.

We see them, we

see the crowd

asking, what

should we do?

A mark of a

repentant person

is that they are

appalled by their

sin.

The crowd was

cut to the

heart.

They accept the

consequences.

They ask, what

should we do?

A repentant

person doesn't

demand forgiveness.

A person who

knows that they

are in the

wrong and is

saying sorry

doesn't say,

well, you

know, sure,

John, I'll

pick on you.

Sure, John, I've

sinned against you.

But because you're

a Christian, you

have to forgive

me.

No, a repentant

person knows that

they can't demand

forgiveness.

But when they get

it, they're

amazed.

And the marks

of an unrepentant

person are the

opposite of

these.

I think we

can, well, I

know at least I

can often have a

facade of

repentance.

I can

apologize but

not mean it.

My sin doesn't

really appall me.

I don't hate it.

I can say, do

you know what, that

thing that I did,

it's fine.

I can excuse my

sin.

Maybe we don't

accept the

consequences but

we try and shift

the blame.

You know, they

demand forgiveness.

You know, John, you

really should forgive

me.

And forgiveness is

not a gift, it is

an expectation.

The unrepentant

person may just

say sorry to fix

the situation, not

because they are

sorrowful about

what they have

done.

But repenting

is really hard.

And that's the

third thing we see

about repentance

here.

Repenting is

challenging.

And it's actually

really challenging

for us to deal

with our sin and

to understand its

consequences.

It's painful.

And this is why

we need God to

help us.

This is why

this repentance

is new because

it comes as a

gift from God.

it comes with

the Holy Spirit

coming upon us.

The Holy Spirit

works to convict

us of our sin.

We desperately

need Him because

otherwise it is

impossible for us

to face up to

our sin.

We will just be

an unrepentant

person who says

sorry to fix

situations.

Instead, we

need to be cut

to the heart by

God's Word and

God the Holy

Spirit.

repenting is

challenging because

we can desire to

protect ourselves.

I want to save

face before God

and before other

people.

So I can't

confess.

I will confess

partly.

I can shift the

blame or shift

fault.

I see it in me.

I see it in my

kids.

I say to one of

them, did you do

this?

And they say,

he did it

first.

He told me to

do it.

And I see that

in myself.

I have a saying

that I'm going to

keep saying to

myself and to my

family until I'm

good at it, which

is own your own

stuff.

Don't shift blame

to others.

Own it for

yourself.

Own it and

repent of it.

And ask the

Holy Spirit to

help change.

Fourth, once we

have had that,

oh no, what

have I done

moment, a life

of repentance is

truly a joy.

We are accepted

by God.

He cherishes

us.

We are his

valued people.

We are dearly

loved.

We are accepted

into the family

just like those

thousands were

when they

started the

church.

They met

together and

we come into

God's family.

The burden

of our sin

is taken away

and we can

have times of

refreshing.

We don't need

to be fearful

that admitting

fault will ruin

our relationship

with God.

God already

knows what we

are like.

It's actually

a picture of

what authenticity

is to truly

know who we

are.

and how

dependent on

God we

are to

admit our

fault and

to repent.

And then we

can jump for

joy.

We can leap.

We can praise

God.

We can even

do that this

morning.

As we sing

in a moment,

we can jump

around.

That's okay.

We can do

that.

We can have

joy because

what should

have destroyed

us before God

has been

wiped away.

I know that

I have

plenty of

challenges

personally

confessing

my sin

and you

may be

surprised to

know this

but I can

certainly be a

stubborn person.

I know,

I can see the

shock on all

of your faces

this morning.

I know when

I've been in

the wrong with

Alyssa,

my wife,

that it can

be hard

to confess.

I can much

prefer to be

stubborn and

shift the

blame and

actually go,

no, no, no,

it was her

fault.

It's her

fault.

I know that

when I've been

in the wrong,

I've hurt

Alyssa,

I've let her

down.

I cannot

want to

admit that

but there

is something

wonderful

about

confessing

sin.

When I

say to

her,

Alyssa,

I am

sorry,

I let

you down,

I did

this and

I was

wrong and

she forgives

me.

It is

wonderful.

It's like

having a

burden taken

off your

back and

we are

brought

closer.

We can

have new

levels of

intimacy

because there

is no longer

that burden

that keeps

me away

from her.

I'm not

sure if

you've had

this in

a relationship

before but

I certainly

have this.

If there

is conflict

between

Alyssa

and I

because I've

done the

wrong thing,

I don't

want to

see her,

I don't

want to

talk to

her,

I want

to hide

from her

but when

I confess,

when I

say sorry

and there

is forgiveness,

we are

brought

closer,

no longer

am I

hiding from

her out

of fear

that she's

going to

point out

my sin

but that

burden

is taken.

How much

more so

with God

that the

burden of

having a

broken

relationship

is taken

off and

it is

offered to

us.

It's just

like Peter

holding out

his hand

to the

lame man

and saying

do you

want

times of

refreshing?

Do you

want

to have

times of

joy?

Don't miss

out on

that oh

no what

have I done

feeling.

Don't run

and hide

from that

because God

uses his

spirit to

cut us to

the heart

to remind

us of how

we need to

repent and

we can come

before our

great God

and repent

not from

fear but

joy.

Not because

of who we

are but

because we

have a

loving and

merciful God.

Let me

pray for us.

Heavenly

Father,

Lord,

you are

so wonderful,

you are

so great.

you are

so merciful

that you

have dealt

with our

sin and

you offer

us times

of refreshing

and joy.

Father,

we ask

that you

would

continually

cut us

to the

heart.

As we

read your

word,

be working

your spirit

in us so

that we

know how

we need

to repent

and what

we need

to repent

of,

Lord.

Father,

continue to

do this,

sanctify us,

Lord,

so that we

would have

our burdens

taken off,

so that we

can rejoice,

so that we

can stand

before you

when we

meet you,

Lord.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.