Jesus is both Lord and Christ.

Both Lord and Christ

(Acts 2:36, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, August 26, 2013)

[36] Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain

Some truths are more important than others. The doctrines that we hold to here we need to know for certain. The message of this verse was first preached to the Jews, but now has been preached to the nations.

that God

There is a God over all. He has a plan, and the pronouncement Peter gave here at the end of his Pentecost sermon, was central to that plan. When God wanted to solve Adam's “alone” problem, He did it in such a way that He would clearly be the One who had accomplished that miracle. When He wanted to start a new resurrection world, He did it by His own powerful hand.

has made him

Central to that plan is Jesus, a most mysterious and wonderful figure. Paul writes about Jesus in Romans 1:4 that he “was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead.” God made Jesus to be something. The words, “Son of God” were used in Psalm 2 to speak of a coming king. His kingdom was not of this world, but a new world that is coming into being now.

both Lord and Christ,

That new world has at the head of it someone whom God made to be both Lord and Christ. Every realm, real or imagined, needs some system of governance. In the kingdom of God, we have one man over all who is both Lord and Christ.

He is Lord over all. Though He is gentle, He is very much in charge. He is our absolute monarch. He speaks through His Word.

At the same time, He is the Christ, the Messiah. We needed a man to rescue us, and the One who is the King of the new kingdom is our rescuer. Israel, in her youth, got into trouble over and over again. They needed an “Anointed One” to save them from their enemies. Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit, and He remains forever full of the Holy Spirit.

This is the man who leads His resurrection church, our Lord/Emperor and our Christ/Spirit-Filled Rescuer.

this Jesus whom you crucified.How did He rescue us? Through the lowliest service. What kind of service? The cross. Who crucified Him? The people Peter was talking to, even if they were not actually yelling “Crucify Him” a few weeks earlier. This Jesus died for them. “It was my sin that held him there until it was accomplished.”

Application: Be captivated by the very center of the historic Christian faith: that God has made Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified by men, both Emperor and Spirit-Filled Rescuer over a new world, a fact that is well attested by His resurrection from the dead.

The way we do everything in the Kingdom of God is based on our relationship with the One that God made to be our Emperor and Spirit-Filled Rescuer. We serve Him by loving one another by His power now at work within us. His new kingdom is in us, because He is in us, and He is the hope of glory. God has made Jesus, who died for our sins, both Lord and Christ. Know this for certain, and live it out everywhere. Be captivated by Jesus.