GRINDIT podcast

Acts 3 starts off with the healing of the lame man. On a daily basis this man was brought by someone, perhaps his family, in order to beg for money. With the hundreds of people that would be walking through the gate of the temple to worship, his chances of collecting some money were great! Peter and John decided to go to the 3 o'clock prayer meeting at the temple but they never made it. They saw the lame man as they were walking by and he asked them for some money but what he received was far greater! Peter reaches down and grabs his arm, helps him to his feet, and instantly this man who was paralyzed since birth was able to stand on his feet, walk, and then leaping praising God! People saw it and a crowd gathered to see what had just taken place. Peter seized the opportunity and shared Jesus.

The Holy Spirit falls on the apostles and it causes a great commotion. A crowd gathers and they think the apostles are drunk. So Peter stands up and we see the display of the power of the Holy Spirit as Peter quotes, with great confidence, the prophet Joel as well as some Psalms as he preaches the very first sermon given by the Spirit. It convicts many of the Jews that were present and they are obedient to the instructions given. What instructions and why do we want to argue about them? Why not just do what he says?

Around ten days had past since Jesus ascended to the Father and the disciples are doing what Jesus commanded them to do...waiting. They are waiting for the promise of the Comforter that Jesus talked about in John 14. Who are the "They"? Is it the 120 or the 12? We dive into some scripture to support the answer in this episode of GRINDIT as well as discuss a little about Pentecost.

We finish up Acts 2 by covering verses 43-47 and discussing various points in this text.

Jesus has died on the cross, was buried for three days, and came out of the tomb alive...just like he said he would do. He shows himself to his disciples several times in a forty day period to prove to them he is really alive and he wants them to try and grasp the concept of the kingdom. After those forty days were over he is talking with them on the Mount of Olives and he starts ascending into heaven! He gave hem a commandment before he left, "Wait...Wait for the promise of my Father and when the promise comes you will be my witnesses." The transition of power has taken place. The kingdom is now in the hands of the disciples!

Peter had denied Jesus three times before he died on a cross. After the resurrection he sits at a fire with Jesus watching the fish cook and Jesus asks him three times, “Do you love me?” In the English language we miss what Jesus is really asking Peter. Jesus is trying to get Peter to realize that he will have to love him unconditionally to make it through the days ahead when persecution starts. All Peter wanted to do was focus on another disciple and Jesus tells Peter, “You don’t worry about him and follow me.” Far too often we want to look at other people when we should be looking at ourselves and focusing on what we can do for the kingdom. We need to be obedient…

Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, they know me, and they follow me.” If that’s the case, then why did some of his closest followers not know who he was after the resurrection? They heard Jesus speak from the shore but they didn’t know who he was and this happened not once but twice! I discuss it in this episode of the GRINDIT Podcast. The answer is something we all need to hear so share with your family and friends…

In the second podcast on the resurrection we cover Jesus appearing to the disciples for the first time. As he just appears in a room with them he gives them peace. Many people today can relate to the disciples because their lives are filled with chaos and confusion so they need the peace of God in their lives. Thomas missed Jesus' appearance and he wouldn't believe the disciples story. He wanted to see Jesus for himself and many people are this way. We choose not to believe unless we have something tangible. We don't want fake news, we want it first hand. So Jesus lets Thomas wait eight days before he appeared again. Thomas had to endure a lot of different emotions for over a week but when Jesus showed up, they all went away and Thomas, along with all the disciples, were filled with joy! What are you waiting on God for? Don't give up...keep the faith...and when God does show up, He will make all things well!

The greatest event in history happens in John 20...the resurrection! This single event is where we find our hope and strength because they saw Jesus die, they saw him buried, and now they see him alive again! It changed their lives forever and the resurrection will change yours as well. I have broken this chapter up into two podcasts to talk about the details of this event. In this episode we cover Mary Magdalene and her experience at the tomb. She is so distraught and caught off guard from the tomb being empty that she didn't realize she was having a conversation with two angels and even Jesus himself!

In John 19 we have the crucifixion of Jesus and we discuss the details of it. Other gospel accounts give more details and I share those in this podcast. The religious leaders who should have been excited about the Messiah's arrival wanted him dead instead. They got what they wanted but it was all apart of God's eternal plan. Jesus had to be the sacrifice for our sins and he was. He willingly laid down his life so we could have life with him for eternity. He is the Passover Lamb that was slain for the penalty of our sin. Hope has a name and his name is Jesus!