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Scripture Reading: Acts 3:1-26
In our reading of the Bible we still may be influenced unconsciously by traditional theology. We need to drop the old traditional theology and come back to the Bible in a new, fresh way. If we read Acts 3 in this way, we shall see that the Lord is the Servant of God, the Holy One, the Righteous One, and the Author of life. We shall also pay attention to the seasons of refreshing spoken of in verse 19. As we have pointed out, in our experience Christ Himself is the season of refreshing, for He is our enjoyment, rest, and peace.
Have you ever heard that you can enjoy the Lord? Have you ever heard a speaker use the word “enjoy” with respect to your relationship with the Lord? Many believers have never heard that they can enjoy the Lord. In today’s religion there is little enjoyment of the Lord, if any. However, by the Lord’s mercy I can testify that for years I have been encouraging the Lord’s people to enjoy Him.
In 1965 we had a conference in Los Angeles on eating Jesus. During that conference, we covered the matter of eating throughout the Bible: the tree of life, the Passover lamb with the unleavened bread and the bitter herbs, the manna, and the produce of the good land. We considered the Lord’s word in John 6 concerning eating Him and the charge, given by Him when He established His table, to eat His body. Furthermore, we considered the Lord’s promise in Revelation 2:7 that the overcomers will eat of the tree of life. We also saw the promise in Revelation 22:14, the promise that those who wash their robes may have the right to the tree of life.
A certain preacher attended that conference. Afterward, he remarked that he had never heard about enjoying the Lord by eating Him. He wondered where I had learned all these things concerning eating the Lord and enjoying Him. I use this as an illustration of the need to realize that the Lord Jesus is enjoyable.
Some believers may not realize that Christ can be their enjoyment, because they are under the influence of traditional theological teaching in their reading of the Bible. Whenever they come to the Bible, they wear the “colored glasses” of tradition. We need to take off any such “glasses” and read the Bible according to its own color. If we do this, we shall pay attention to the Author of life and the seasons of refreshing in Acts 3.
If we enjoy Christ, we shall have a season of refreshing. We can enjoy a season of refreshing simply by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus. Call “O Lord Jesus!” and you will be in a season of refreshing.
We need to enjoy seasons of refreshing in our married life. For example, a sister may become angry with her husband. As a result, she is bound like the bent-doubled and Satan-bound woman in Luke 13:10-17. Often a wife may be “bent-double” because she is bound by the anger she feels for her husband. How can a sister be released from such bondage? She can be released simply by calling, “O Lord Jesus!”
Whenever we are bound, we need to call on the Lord. Then we shall be able to say, “Amen, Lord Jesus! I am now in a season of refreshing.” I encourage you to enjoy a season of refreshing by calling on the Lord’s name.
Some who have a great deal of theological knowledge may be unwilling to call on the name of the Lord. They may be afraid of “losing face.” But we may need to lose our face in order to gain the Lord Jesus. What an enjoyment it is to call on His name! Sometimes I am beside myself with joy in the Lord when I call on Him and enjoy seasons of refreshing. Day by day, and throughout the day, we can enjoy seasons of refreshing simply by calling on the Lord.
Some criticize the practice of calling on the name of the Lord Jesus and claim that it is something we have invented. Calling on the Lord is a biblical practice; it certainly is not something invented by us. Calling on the name of the Lord is not a new practice in the New Testament. It began with Enosh, the third generation of mankind (Gen. 4:26) and was continued by many others (see note on 2:21 in the Recovery Version of Acts).
When some hear that calling on the Lord began with Enosh, they may claim that Enosh did not call the way we do today. To this I would reply, “How then, did Enosh call on the name of the Lord? Did he say, ‘O Lord, have mercy on me. Lord, I am in a pitiful situation and have many problems. Lord, what can I do?’”
We cannot understand the way to call on the name of the Lord by reading only one verse. Rather, we need to consider this matter throughout the Scriptures. If we read the Old Testament from Genesis 4 to Isaiah 12, we shall find out the way to call on the Lord. Isaiah, in particular, indicates that we need to call on the Lord joyfully: “Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. And in that day shall ye say, Praise the Lord, call upon His name, declare His doings among the people, make mention that His name is exalted” (Isa. 12:3-4). We draw water out of the wells of salvation by joyfully calling on the name of the Lord.
Suppose a certain brother has a number of problems. His wife is in the hospital, his older son has lost his job, and his younger son is not doing well in school. This brother should not say, “Lord, I need You to have mercy on me because I am in great need. Lord, my wife is in the hospital, my elder son lost his job, and my younger son is failing in school. Lord, please help me.” Instead of praying in this way, the brother should call on the Lord and say, “Lord Jesus, You are the Lord! You are sovereign. Lord Jesus, I thank You that You know about my situation. You know, Lord, that my wife is in the hospital, that my older son lost his job, and that my younger son is failing in school. O Lord Jesus!” This is to call on the Lord strongly and joyfully. Surely this is the way the saints in both the Old Testament and in the New Testament called on the name of the Lord.
The Greek word for “call” in 2:21 is epikaleo, composed of epi, upon and kaleo, call by name, that is, to call out audibly, even loudly, as Stephen did (7:59-60). From this we see that to call on the name of the Lord is to call on Him audibly. This is not a teaching or practice invented by us; it is a scriptural fact. If you study the lengthy note on calling in the Recovery Version, you will see how scriptural this practice is. Calling on the Lord is fully grounded on the revelation in the Old Testament and in the New Testament. Furthermore, from experience we know that when we call on the name of the Lord Jesus, we enjoy a season of refreshing. Whenever we call on Him, we are in a season of refreshing. This is a fact in the Word and in our experience, and I encourage you to try it.
In 3:22 and 23 Peter points out that the Lord Jesus is a Prophet: “Moses indeed said, A Prophet will the Lord your God raise up for you, from your brothers, like me; Him you shall hear in all things, whatever He may speak to you. And it shall be that every soul, whoever does not hear that Prophet, shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.” As the Prophet, Christ speaks for God, and He speaks forth God.
In 3:25 we see that the Lord Jesus is also the seed of Abraham: “You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God covenanted with your fathers, saying to Abraham, And in your seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” In this verse the “seed” refers to Christ (Gal. 3:16). Here Peter seems to be saying, “The man Jesus, the Nazarene, the One despised by the Jewish leaders, is the seed of Abraham in whom all the nations of the earth will be blessed. Not only is He God’s Servant, the Holy One, the Righteous One, the Author of life, and the Prophet — He is also the seed of Abraham, in whom the entire earth will be blessed.”
The Healer in Acts 3 is marvelous. We should turn from the healing and pay attention to the Healer. We appreciate the healing, but we appreciate the Healer much more. This Healer is the One in whom all the families of the earth, all races, colors, and nationalities, will be blessed.
In our reading of chapter three of Acts we need to pay attention to all the points related to Christ as the Healer. He is the Servant of God and the Holy One, the One who was absolutely for God. As the Righteous One, He is right with God, with man, and with every thing in the heavens and on the earth. Furthermore, He is the Author of life. He is not only life — He is the Originator of life, the source and origin of life. He also brings in seasons of refreshing. When we contact Him, we are in a season of refreshing. This Healer is also the Prophet speaking for God and speaking forth God. Finally, He is the seed in whom all the families of the earth will be blessed.
We may read Acts 3 without paying attention to the aspects of Christ as the Healer revealed in this chapter. How is it possible for us to read this chapter without seeing these things? It is possible because of the influence of traditional theology. In our reading of Acts 3, this influence may keep us from seeing all the different matters related to Christ as the Healer. We need to see that the Healer is the Servant, the Holy One, the Righteous One, the Author of life, the Prophet, and the seed in whom all the families of the earth will be blessed. What a Healer He is! Instead of caring for healing, we need to enjoy the Healer. As long as we have the Healer, we shall have the seasons of refreshing.
After presenting Christ as the Healer in a number of different aspects, Peter utters a concluding word in verse 26: “To you first, God, having raised up His Servant, has sent Him to bless you in turning away each one of you from your wickedness.” God has sent back the ascended Christ to the Jews first by pouring out His Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Hence, the Spirit God poured out is the very Christ God raised and exalted to the heavens. When the apostles preached and ministered this Christ, the Spirit was ministered to people.
At the time Peter was speaking the word recorded in verse 26, God’s Servant had ascended to the heavens and was still there. Nevertheless, Peter told the people that God had sent Christ to bless them. What does this mean? Actually, God has received Christ into the heavens. But here Peter says that God has sent this ascended One to the people. In what way did God send the ascended Christ to the Jews? God sent Him by pouring out the Spirit. That was God’s way of sending the ascended Christ to the people. This implies that the outpoured Spirit is actually the ascended Christ Himself. When the outpoured Spirit came to the people, that was Christ, the ascended One, sent by God to them. From this we see that the poured-out Spirit is identical to the ascended Christ. In God’s economy for the experience of His people, the ascended Christ and the poured-out Spirit are one. In God’s economy Christ and the Spirit are one for our enjoyment.
In presenting Christ to the people, Peter spoke of Him as God’s Servant, the Holy One, the Righteous One, the Author of life, the Prophet, and the seed in whom we receive God’s blessing. Then Peter concludes by saying, “To you first, God, having raised up His Servant, has sent Him to bless you....” Here Peter seems to be saying, “God has sent this One first to you to bless you. How did God send Him? He sent Him in the way of pouring out His Spirit to you in order to bless you. Now you need to receive this One. He is not far from you. Although He is in the heavens, economically He is among you as the poured-out Spirit to bless you. If you call on His name, you will receive His person — the Holy Spirit. The name is ‘Jesus’ but the person is the Spirit. Call on the name of the Lord Jesus and receive the Spirit. Then you will have God’s blessing.” This is the way for us to receive the blessing God intends to give us by sending the ascended Christ back to us as the life-giving Spirit.
