3,000 Baptisms - Acts 2:37-47

2:37-38 - Peter is really letting the Jews at Jerusalem have it, testifying by the power of the Holy Ghost that Jesus Christ is the Messiah and that they had a part in his murder. Like we talked about yesterday, the chief priests had assumed that once Jesus was dead that his following would be dead as well, but it would seem from the outside that after His death, Jesus’ message was even more powerful. We might attribute this to the fact that Jesus’ disciples now have the Holy Ghost and the power and authority that comes with it. We can also consider that the bonds of death were broken for the first time ever in human history. The chief priests had never had anyone they’ve killed come back from the dead before, and to all people, death was the ultimate silencer. Death ended people’s noble works and left them in the dust, and now that Jesus had conquered death and completed the atonement, he was given all power and authority from Heavenly Father. Jesus could now direct his own work with all the command of the universe. All this combined might have explained why Peter’s words carried so much power to the hearts of the people.

He’s pretty accusatory in his tone, condemning the people around him as the murders of God. He uses phrases like, “whom ye have crucified” to place the responsibility for the sins committed by the chief priests directly on the shoulders of the people. This makes sense because on a general scale, the non-dictatorial leadership of an organization is largely a reflection of the people they represent. That is true for us with Trump as president, he represents who we are as a people, if America were a righteous nation, we never would have allowed such a man to lead and represent us. But then again, the same argument could be made for Hilary, so we were really screwed no matter how we went. But the point that we’ve allowed our government to become so corrupt that we could even get to the point of having to choose between the lesser of two evils, that’s on us.
Anyway, just because these individual citizens didn’t personally drive the nails into Jesus’ hands or whip him to the point of death, does not excuse their complicities’, Because they did not accept Christ when he came to them, their leadership was able to have him executed without their outrage. And now with Peter teaching them that “hey, you guys messed up, the Messiah that you’ve been waiting for died and was raised from the dead and went back to God,” they are starting to panic a little bit, and “they were pricked in their heart” because of Peter’s words. The IM says, “As the people came to the terrible realization that they had crucified their Messiah, they may have feared that they had lost hope of salvation.”
The people ask him “what shall we do?” And what I find interesting is that Peter answers the same words that we would be told today if we were in this exact same circumstance. He says, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” The IM says, “the principles that were taught by Peter were declared by the Prophet Joseph Smith to be ‘the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel.” I love the continuity here with the gospel that we have today, it shows God’s stability and love for all people.
2:39-40 - Peter continues that if they repent and are baptized they will receive the Holy Ghost and, “the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” The IM teaches, “Peter declared that the promise of remission of sins and the gift of the Holy Ghost was not for the Apostles alone. These blessings are God’s gifts to all who will repent, be baptized, and live worthy of receiving them. Regarding the availability of the gift of the Holy Ghost, President Boyd K. Packer taught: ‘In every language, the Spirit of God- the Holy Ghost- guides, or can guide, every member of the Church. Everyone is invited to come and repent and be baptized and receive of this sacred gift… No matter what trial awaits us, we can find the answer to that question, ‘What shall we do?’ We, and those we love, will be guided and corrected and protected, and we will be comforted… I know the gift of the Holy Ghost, a sacred spiritual power, can be a constant companion to every soul who will receive it.’”
Looking back throughout history, the concept that only a select few can be spiritual has been used to usurp power over others. Think back to the time when only the clergy had the scriptures and they taught that only they could speak to God. Those teachings cause a huge amount of abuse, to the point that the man who worked to give everyone the scriptures was executed for trying to educate the poor in the ways of God. This man was William Tyndale who translated the Bible into English. It makes sense that the clergy who were fluent in Latin could read the scriptures that had been translated into Latin, but the regular people who only spoke English could not read them. By giving the people equal access to the word of God, Tyndale said, “I will cause the boy who drives the plow to know more of the scriptures than you do.” I love that, his statement is powerful and unapologetic. The fact that he was murdered for his efforts shows exactly how much power there is to be had in religious affairs, which shows how equitable and merciful God is to all that he would desire to give everyone access to him.
2:41-42 - The words of the Apostles was widely received and the group of 120 disciples that started the day out in an upper room in Jerusalem swelled to “about three thousand souls” by sunset. There is a painting in the baptistery portion of the Salt Lake Temple that depicts the Apostles baptizing the masses on the day of Pentecost. And these who were joined with the disciples “continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.” The IM references this verse with 3 Nephi 12:1 where the Savior tells the Nephites, “Blessed are ye if ye shall give heed unto the words of these twelve whom I have chosen from among you to minister unto you, and to be your servants.” Even though the death of Christ was within the last couple of months, there was still a need for a living prophet at the head of the Church, and Jesus had promised to give them his word through his appointed Apostles. I also think it’s interesting that the met together “in breaking of bread, and in prayers,” sounds a lot like the sacrament to me. Much of what these early saints are doing is what we do now, meet together to hear the word of God, take the sacrament, sing, pray, and strengthen each other.
2:43-47 - Because these saints were faithful and devoted, “many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.” It’s like they say in the Book of Mormon, if miracles have ceased, then it is because of the lack of faith among the people. Their existence wasn’t simply keeping the commandments and suffering, God provided joy and fulfillment and wonders and miracles for his people, and he does that for us now. The believers “were together, and had all things in common; and sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.” This is what happened with the Nephites after the Savior visited them. If we think about it, all we have is because God gifted it to us, so we aren’t entitled to anything, so it would be reasonable for God to require us to care for those who were “less fortunate” with the substance that he does give us.
The tv show that I watched about what happened after the death of Christ had all the believers out living in the desert together, and maybe that’s how it was. But they couldn’t have gone too far because they “continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did ear their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.” A belief in the Savior brought people happiness and joy and unselfishness, so there was love and good feelings had among themselves and among other people. This is what the Spirit and the influence of the Messiah brings into people’s lives, happiness and joy, comfort and peace, knowledge and understanding.
But why were they still going to the temple where the Law of Moses was being perpetuated, if Jesus fulfilled the Law? The IM answers, “Though Jesus Christ had fulfilled the law of Moses- and this law continued to be practiced at the temple in Jerusalem- His followers continued to look to the Jerusalem temple as an important place of worship. References in Acts indicate that the Jewish Christians went often to the temple to pray, worship, teach, minister, and participate in religious celebrations. The 
Apostles often preached at the temple, perhaps because they knew they would find individuals interested in God there.”