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Tongues like Fire - The Book of Acts · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues
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  Speaker 1: like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
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  Speaker 1: Acts 2.3 Holy Spirit, I thank you for overwhelming me
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  Speaker 1: with the wind of your presence. I thank you that
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  Speaker 1: in the same way that tongues like fire fell on
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  Speaker 1: the disciples, that same anointing is falling on me. As
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  Speaker 1: your words fill my mouth, may they be heard and
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  Speaker 1: understood across all boundaries and borders. May your words of
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  Speaker 1: freedom be felt and experienced in the hearts of all
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  Speaker 1: that I speak to. I praise you, Lord, because revival
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  Speaker 1: is breaking out all around me. I praise you, Lord,
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  Speaker 1: that through the power of the Holy Spirit, I'm equipped
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  Speaker 1: to fully realize the purpose of my life. Add daily
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  Speaker 1: to the number of those who are impacted by the
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  Speaker 1: gospel of Jesus Christ. Use me as a conduit to
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  Speaker 1: speak words of hope and life to everyone I meet today.
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  Speaker 1: I declare that the wind of change is upon us
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  Speaker 1: and your wind of goodness is about to blow us away.
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  Speaker 1: In Jesus' name.
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  Speaker 2: Amen.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you for praying with us today. Continue your time
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  Speaker 1: with God by listening to today's Bible story. Brought to
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  Speaker 1: you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Tongues like fire. In our last story, Jesus commissioned His
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  Speaker 2: disciples to go in power and authority, He comforted them
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  Speaker 2: and told them that the Holy Spirit would come to
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  Speaker 2: help them. So now the disciples wait on the Holy
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  Speaker 2: Spirit to move. In this story, the Holy Spirit shows
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  Speaker 2: up like a whirlwind. The disciples show up to the
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  Speaker 2: temple and declare the truth of Christ to people of
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  Speaker 2: all nations, inspired by the book of Acts.
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  Speaker 3: Hello, I'm Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of the
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  Speaker 3: Bible in a Year podcast. Thanks for joining us. In
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  Speaker 3: our most recent episode, we learned of the mission Jesus
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  Speaker 3: gave to his followers and all of us as he
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  Speaker 3: ascended into heaven. He commanded us to go into all
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  Speaker 3: the world and make disciples of all nations, making it
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  Speaker 3: clear that God's plan of salvation is for everyone in
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  Speaker 3: the world. With the mission came the promise of the
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  Speaker 3: Holy Spirit, and today we're going to hear how the
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  Speaker 3: disciples and others gathered in an upper room to wait
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  Speaker 3: for the promise of the Holy Spirit. how they prayed,
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  Speaker 3: and how God gave the gospel message to them in
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  Speaker 3: the presence and the power of Pentecost. Let's now listen
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  Speaker 3: to today's reading from God's Word.
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  Speaker 2: It was Pentecost, a time when devoted people of all
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  Speaker 2: nations came to Jerusalem to celebrate and worship God. The
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  Speaker 2: uproar caused by Jesus' death had subsided, and all seemed
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  Speaker 2: to be coming back to normal. The high priests stood
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  Speaker 2: in the temple courtyards, watching people pass by with their
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  Speaker 2: sacrifices and money purses. They finally began to feel powerful again.
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  Speaker 2: The rumors of Jesus' resurrection still lingered, but they were
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  Speaker 2: hopeful that they had heard the last of his name.
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  Speaker 2: A small wind began to blow through the city of Jerusalem,
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  Speaker 2: and the tents in the temple courtyards swayed to the
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  Speaker 2: gentle gusts. Among the sea of people were the twelve.
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  Speaker 2: They walked with intention, Moving towards the temple steps where
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  Speaker 2: Jerusalem once stood, Peter and the rest of the disciples
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  Speaker 2: stood boldly for all to see. People began to look
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  Speaker 2: as the wind picked up even more. Then, like the
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  Speaker 2: breath of God himself, a sound from heaven boomed like
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  Speaker 2: a mighty wind. The entire house of God was filled
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  Speaker 2: with the wind of God. Flames appeared from the sky,
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  Speaker 2: resembling tongues of fire. They hovered over the mouths of
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  Speaker 2: the disciples. The Holy Spirit... had arrived. Just as Jesus
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  Speaker 2: had promised, the life of God was given to each disciple.
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  Speaker 2: They began to utter the truths of God with boldness
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  Speaker 2: and eloquence. Yet the strange thing was that every man
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  Speaker 2: and woman in the temple heard their words in their
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  Speaker 2: own native language. Parthians, Medes, Elamites, Mesopotamians, Judeans, Cappadocians, Asians,
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  Speaker 2: Phrygians and Pamphylians, Egyptians, Libyans, Romans, Jews, Cretans, and Arabians
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  Speaker 2: all heard the disciples preach the truth of God in
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  Speaker 2: their own tongue. Who are these men? they asked. Aren't
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  Speaker 2: they uneducated men from Galilee? How is it that we
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  Speaker 2: hear them all in our own languages? Many were amazed
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  Speaker 2: and confused at what was taking place, but others were
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  Speaker 2: not as impressed. They are drunk, some of them yelled.
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  Speaker 2: They are drunk fishermen from Galilee. Peter stepped out from
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  Speaker 2: among them and looked at the crowd. We are not drunk.
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  Speaker 2: It is only morning after all, Peter declared. A small
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  Speaker 2: chuckle could be heard from the crowd. Peter looked at
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  Speaker 2: the sea of faces below. He was welled up with love.
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  Speaker 2: The love of Jesus overcame him. He was born to
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  Speaker 2: be here. People of Israel! Hear my words, Peter shouted.
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  Speaker 2: Jesus of Nazareth did mighty works among you. You saw
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  Speaker 2: them with your own eyes. He was delivered into the
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  Speaker 2: hands of the priests and killed. You crucified him. However,
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  Speaker 2: God used him to defeat the sting of death, for
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  Speaker 2: Jesus could not be held by the grave. The crowd
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  Speaker 2: became silent as they listened to the Holy Spirit speak
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  Speaker 2: through Peter. The once angry and foolish fisherman was now
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  Speaker 2: preaching in front of thousands of people. Brothers and sisters,
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  Speaker 2: our King David died and was buried in his tomb.
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  Speaker 2: You can still visit it today, but the tomb of
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  Speaker 2: Jesus is empty. He is raised. Let all the house
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  Speaker 2: of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made
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  Speaker 2: him both Lord and Christ. Peter paused for a moment,
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  Speaker 2: looking at the lost souls that stood before him. Repent,
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  Speaker 2: repent and be baptized, for forgiveness and atonement for your
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  Speaker 2: sins are in Jesus and no longer in the temple.
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  Speaker 2: All who are far off, come. To Peter's astonishment, thousands
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  Speaker 2: of people came forward to be prayed for and be baptized.
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  Speaker 2: Three thousand souls believed in the finished work of Jesus
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  Speaker 2: that day, and they devoted themselves to the teaching of
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  Speaker 2: the twelve disciples. They grew in community and fellowship with
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  Speaker 2: one another. Awe came upon every soul. They shared all
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  Speaker 2: that they had with one another. Day by day, the
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  Speaker 2: Lord added to their numbers as they preached the gospel,
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  Speaker 2: broke bread, and met in each other's homes. Souls were
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  Speaker 2: being saved. Revival had begun, and the world would never
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  Speaker 2: be the same.
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  Speaker 3: In our scripture today, we begin in Jerusalem on the
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  Speaker 3: day of Pentecost. Jesus had ascended to heaven just ten
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  Speaker 3: days before, and the disciples were still waiting for the
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  Speaker 3: promise of the Spirit, just as Jesus commanded them. They
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  Speaker 3: were expecting the power of God to fall upon them
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  Speaker 3: and enable them to preach the gospel to the world.
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  Speaker 3: Pentecost was an important date of feasting for the Jews.
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  Speaker 3: So as Peter and the other disciples gathered in the
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  Speaker 3: temple courts, Jews from all over the known world had
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  Speaker 3: gathered in Jerusalem to commemorate the harvest of wheat. Little
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  Speaker 3: did anyone know at that time, but this Pentecost would
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  Speaker 3: involve a different kind of harvest, a harvest of souls. Suddenly,
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  Speaker 3: as they waited and prayed, the sound of rushing wind
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  Speaker 3: came from heaven and filled the place. Then the disciples
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  Speaker 3: and those gathered with them saw tongues of fire coming
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  Speaker 3: down and resting on their heads. It was as though
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  Speaker 3: they became human candles lit up by the presence of God.
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  Speaker 3: The Spirit of God, the promised helper and advocate, has
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  Speaker 3: now arrived. And those who had followed Jesus and were
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  Speaker 3: waiting for the power that came from God, they received
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  Speaker 3: that power in the presence and the promise of the
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  Speaker 3: Holy Spirit that day. The Spirit of God, of course,
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  Speaker 3: has always been present. And he often filled people throughout
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  Speaker 3: the Bible. Joseph, David, Joshua, and many others experienced the
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  Speaker 3: power of the Holy Spirit. But it was not permanent.
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  Speaker 3: This time it was different. This was the fulfillment of
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  Speaker 3: the promise that Jesus had given days before. And also,
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  Speaker 3: according to the scripture, a fulfillment of Joel's prophecy that
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  Speaker 3: God would pour out his spirit on all flesh, that
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  Speaker 3: men and women would prophesy and speak God's truth to others.
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  Speaker 3: This is exactly what happened on that day when the
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  Speaker 3: Holy Spirit came. They began to speak with languages as
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  Speaker 3: the spirit enabled them so that people understood the gospel.
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  Speaker 3: As they spoke God's truth, Travelers and foreigners who were
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  Speaker 3: there to worship could understand their mother tongues, all that
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  Speaker 3: these men and women were saying. They were amazed and astounded,
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  Speaker 3: unable to understand how these men from Galilee, most of
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  Speaker 3: whom had never traveled more than a few miles from home,
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  Speaker 3: could speak in these languages that they had never known
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  Speaker 3: or studied, languages that people had spoken all over the world.
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  Speaker 3: When some of the people who observed this saw it,
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  Speaker 3: they assumed the men were drunk and speaking gibberish. But Peter,
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  Speaker 3: filled with the Holy Spirit, stood up and spoke. Peter,
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  Speaker 3: the same man who was known for lashing out, speaking
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  Speaker 3: before thinking, acting brashly, began to calmly and confidently address
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  Speaker 3: the crowds. The man who denied the Lord three times,
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  Speaker 3: now full of the Spirit, speaks with power and conviction,
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  Speaker 3: with boldness and courage. In Acts 2, verse 17, we
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  Speaker 3: hear as he proclaims that today was the fulfillment of
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  Speaker 3: the prophecy of Scripture. And in the last days it
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  Speaker 3: shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my
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  Speaker 3: Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters
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  Speaker 3: shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and
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  Speaker 3: your old men shall dream dreams. As he continued, Peter
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  Speaker 3: poured out the truth of the gospel to those gathered
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  Speaker 3: that day. He spoke of who Jesus is and what
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  Speaker 3: he did by dying on the cross and rising again.
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  Speaker 3: Many of that crowd no doubt had been there when
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  Speaker 3: they cried out, crucify him, crucify him, and the blood
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  Speaker 3: of Jesus was on their hands. But rather than the
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  Speaker 3: stain of condemnation, the blood of Jesus Christ would cleanse
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  Speaker 3: them of their sins and change their lives if they
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  Speaker 3: would only repent and receive him. The very death for
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  Speaker 3: which they were responsible was the very means by which
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  Speaker 3: God brought salvation and redemption to them. His words cut
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  Speaker 3: them to the core. Convicted of their sins, they said,
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  Speaker 3: what must we do? And Peter told them about repentance,
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  Speaker 3: turning from their sin and trusting in Christ. He spoke
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  Speaker 3: to them about being baptized in the name of Jesus.
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  Speaker 3: And as they turned from their sin, confessed and trusted
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  Speaker 3: Christ for his grace. they too received the incredible gift
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  Speaker 3: of God's Spirit. This day of Pentecost was a harvest
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  Speaker 3: of souls. More than 3,000 came to Christ that day
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  Speaker 3: and believed in the gospel. It was the birth of
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  Speaker 3: the church, the body of Christ. And as more heard
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  Speaker 3: about the good news of Jesus Christ, their numbers grew
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  Speaker 3: day after day after day. Multitudes of people were coming
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  Speaker 3: to faith in Christ. The Spirit of God had sparked
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  Speaker 3: a fire that would spread across Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and
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  Speaker 3: to the uttermost parts of the world and change the
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  Speaker 3: course of history and the destiny of mankind. There would
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  Speaker 3: be those who would try to extinguish the flame of God,
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  Speaker 3: but nothing would stop the movement of Jesus Christ into
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  Speaker 3: the world. God's word would not be stopped, and neither
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  Speaker 3: could his people. Dear God, we thank you for the
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  Speaker 3: dear Holy Spirit. Thank you for giving us this promise.
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  Speaker 3: and your presence in our lives every single day. Thank
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  Speaker 3: you for today's scripture in Acts chapter 2 and what
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  Speaker 3: happens when we proclaim the gospel and your spirit works
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  Speaker 3: through us. May you give us boldness that we may
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  Speaker 3: believe and that we may proclaim the good news of
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  Speaker 3: Jesus Christ. And let me just say to someone listening
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  Speaker 3: to this right now who does not have a personal
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  Speaker 3: relationship with Jesus Christ, if you will repent of your sins,
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  Speaker 3: That means to turn from your sin, to be willing
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  Speaker 3: for God to change your heart and forgive you of
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  Speaker 3: all your sin by receiving Christ as your Lord and Savior.
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  Speaker 3: Then you also will receive the power of God in
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  Speaker 3: your life to forgive you, to change you, and to
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  Speaker 3: make you a brand new person and give you the
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  Speaker 3: promise of heaven. Put your faith and trust in Jesus today.
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  Speaker 3: In his name we pray. Amen. Thank you for listening
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  Speaker 3: to today's Bible in a Year podcast. I'm Jack Graham
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  Speaker 3: of Dallas, Texas. You can download the Pray.com app and
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  Speaker 3: make prayer and Bible study the priority of your life.
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  Speaker 3: And if you enjoyed this podcast, tell someone about it.
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  Speaker 3: Pass it on. Let others know because it is our
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  Speaker 3: desire to get God's Word to as many people as
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  Speaker 3: possible as fast as possible. And if you want to
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  Speaker 3: know more about what it means to be a Christ follower,
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  Speaker 3: what it means to be a disciple of Jesus, then
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  Speaker 3: go to jackgraham.org, jackgraham.org. And we have many resources that
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  Speaker 3: are available for you there. God bless you.