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Well, please turn with me in 
your Bibles to the book of Acts. We're in Acts chapter 2. Acts chapter 2, I'll begin reading 
in verse 1. We'll read to verse 21, and then 
our portion this morning will be verses 14 to 21. So Acts 2, beginning in verse 
1. When the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all 
with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound 
from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the 
whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided 
tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they 
were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with 
other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there 
were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation 
under heaven. And when this sound occurred, 
the multitude came together and were confused, because everyone 
heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and 
marveled, saying to one another, look, are not all these who speak 
Galileans? And how is it that we hear each 
in our own language in which we were born? Parthians and Medes 
and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, 
Pontus in Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya 
adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 
Cretans and Arabs, We hear them speaking in our own tongues the 
wonderful works of God. So they were all amazed and perplexed, 
saying to one another, whatever could this mean? Others, mocking, 
said, they are full of new wine. But Peter, standing up with the 
eleven, raised his voice and said to them, Men of Judea and 
all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and heed 
my words, for these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only 
the third hour of the day. But this is what was spoken by 
the prophet Joel. And it shall come to pass in 
the last days, says God, that I will pour out my spirit on 
all flesh. Your sons and your daughters 
shall prophesy. Your young men shall see visions, 
and your old men shall dream dreams. And on my menservants 
and on my maidservants, I will pour out my spirit in those days, 
and they shall prophesy. I will show wonders in heaven 
above and signs in the earth beneath, blood and fire and vapor 
of smoke. The sun shall be turned into 
darkness and the moon into blood before the coming of the great 
and awesome day of the Lord. And it shall come to pass that 
whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Amen. Let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank You for the written Word of God and we pray that 
You have blessed us and have not left us in this world alone. 
You've given us the Scriptures and You've given us another comforter, 
even the Holy Spirit. We pray that He would be present 
with us now, that You would help us and illumine our minds and 
our hearts, that we may receive Thy holy Word and that it may 
be a benefit and encouragement to each of our hearts. As well, 
God, for any and all who've come here this morning that are outside 
of Christ, those who have not by grace believed, we pray that 
today would be the day of salvation, that they would heed the prophet 
Joel and the apostle Peter and the blessed promise of Scripture 
that whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How 
we thank you for this promise, how we thank you for the work 
of our Lord Jesus Christ and His life, His death, His resurrection. We thank you for the current 
session at the right hand of the Father, where He always lives 
to make intercession for His people, and where He does exercise 
forgiveness and the giving of righteousness to all those who 
come to Him in faith. Do forgive us now for our sins 
and our transgressions. Wash us afresh in that precious 
fountain that is open for sin and uncleanness. Purify our hearts 
and our minds, we pray, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 
Well, in Acts chapter 1, we saw our Lord Jesus emphasize to the 
apostles that they needed to remain in Jerusalem until they 
were endued with power from on high. Now, certainly they obey 
Christ, they do remain in Jerusalem, and we see here in chapter 2, 
verses 1 to 4, the Holy Spirit is poured out upon them in a 
dramatic and in a wonderful and in a glorious way. And having 
been endued by the Spirit with power, the apostles and the disciples, 
the 120, now speak the truth of God to the various persons 
assembled there on the day of Jerusalem. They spoke in tongues. Remember, we're not supposed 
to think tongues relative to Benny Hinn or the Pentecostals 
or the charismatic movement. When you hear tongue, think language. They spoke languages that were 
represented by the people here, and notice specifically the content 
of which they spoke in verse 11. They spoke in our own tongues 
the wonderful works of God. And we see something here of 
a reversal of Babylon. There the men tried to make a 
name for themselves by building this great tower to reach up 
into the heavens, and God confounded them with language. Well, here 
God confuses them but not in a bad way. They are marveling 
at the reality that they hear the truth of God, and they are 
brought nigh now through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
Well, certainly there were mockers present, as we learn there in 
verse 13. The mockers said, they are full 
of new wine. And so now we come to Peter's 
sermon on the day of Pentecost. Peter, first of all, answers 
this particular charge. And then secondly, he gives us 
the fulfillment of Joel's prophecy. And then he goes on to preach 
the person and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ from verses 
22 to verse 39. And then he calls the people 
to repent. to believe the gospel to come and be forgiven of their 
sin. But as I said, our focus is on 
verses 14 to 21 this morning. We'll look first at the response 
to the men of Jerusalem in verses 14 to 16, and then secondly, 
the fulfillment of Joel 28 to 32. But note first, with reference 
to verse 14, we ought to stand amazed again and marvel at the 
grace of God. It's always good for us to do 
this. We sing, amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved 
a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I'm 
found, was blind, but now I see. But I think those first few words 
of verse 14 should give us pause again to reflect on how gracious 
our God is. standing up with the 11. Remember back in chapter 1, we 
made that observation in verse 15. And in those days, Peter 
stood up in the midst of the disciples. Peter had denied the 
Lord. Peter had denied the Master. Peter had denied him to a servant 
girl when called upon to identify himself as an associate of the 
Nazarene. Peter now stands up with the 
11. And if we remember with the 11, 
at least 10 of them, Matthias wasn't present, but 10 of them, 
including Peter, forsook the Lord. According to Matthew's 
gospel, in Matthew chapter 26, the disciples fled. They departed 
from him. And notice the restoring grace 
of God, the goodness and the kindness of God, the forgiveness 
of God. If you've ever doubted the free 
offer of the gospel, if you ever doubted the free mercy of God, 
the great breadth and extent and length and depth of his forgiveness, 
look at Peter and these 11. They had been forgiven much by 
our Lord Jesus, and now they are restored to a place of service 
of Christ with reference to gospel ministry. John Gill says, for 
being endued with the Spirit from on high, he was fearless 
of men, who but a little while ago was frightened by a servant 
maid. That's what God's grace does. Peter stood up with the 11, fearless 
of men, these opposers, these mockers. Now notice what he says. He corrects their charge or he 
corrects their mockery. And specifically note in verse 
14 when he says, men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, 
that confirms our identification of the verse 13 mockers as native 
Jerusalemites, those who oppose Jesus Christ and those who will 
continue to oppose Jesus Christ. Now certainly some from among 
them would be saved, but by and large, Old Covenant Israel is 
represented by these native Jerusalemites. And Peter corrects them. He says, 
these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour 
of the day. It's kind of an interesting way 
to argue against this charge of them being drunk. He says 
it's only nine o'clock. This is not what's happening. 
This is a great phenomena that God has poured out upon us, so 
he not only corrects what they say, he goes on to explain what 
they are doing. witnessing, and he does this 
by appealing to the prophet Joel. Chapter 2 in Joel's prophecy, 
verses 28 to 32. In the Greek translation, the 
Septuagint, it's chapter 3, verses 1 to 5. But before we get to 
Joel, notice what Peter says in verse 16. This is what was 
spoken by the prophet Joel. So I think at least we ought 
to observe three things here before we progress. We ought 
to notice, first of all, that this outpouring of the Holy Spirit 
was no new thing. It wasn't some brand new thing 
in the history of God's dealings with man. This is precisely what 
Joel had prophesied. The Old Covenant expectation 
was not only of a crucified and risen Savior, but an outpoured 
Holy Spirit in a dramatic and glorious manner. Secondly, we 
ought to realize the events of the day of Pentecost were the 
fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel. Now, this ought not to 
take too much to convince you, because look at what Peter says 
in verse 16. This is what was spoken by the 
prophet Joel. You have to get this because 
there are persons that disagree. Peter says absolutely, positively, 
clearly, but this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel. In 
other words, what you are witnessing is what was spoken by the prophet 
Joel. One very famous and popular study 
Bible, representing what's called dispensationalism, explains this 
this way. It says, Joel's prophecy will 
not be completely fulfilled until the millennial kingdom and the 
final judgment. It's not what Peter says. There's 
the literalism that they sort of, you know, extol in their 
interpretative method. He says, but Peter, by using 
it, shows that Pentecost was a pre-fulfillment. He absolutely, 
positively does not. He does not say, but this is 
a pre-fulfillment of what was spoken by the prophet Joel. He 
doesn't say a little now and a little later. He says, this 
is what was spoken by Joel. This popular study Bible goes 
on to say that Peter, by using it, shows that Pentecost was 
a pre-fulfillment, a taste of what will happen in the millennial 
kingdom when the Spirit is poured out on all flesh. That is to 
take one's eschatology, one's preconceived methodology, and 
read it right into Peter's words. Instead of hearing Peter tell 
us that what you're witnessing is what Joel said you would witness. Brethren, this is what Joel spoke 
by way of prophecy. A third observation before we 
proceed is that the presence of the Spirit does not negate 
the authority of Holy Scripture. You have to appreciate what I'm 
doing here. First, we're just highlighting that the pouring 
out of the Holy Spirit is consistent with Old Covenant Scripture. 
Secondly, we're alienating dispensationalists by telling them that this is 
what Joel spoke. Thirdly, we're going to alienate 
the Charismatics and the Pentecostals because notice that the outpouring 
of the Holy Spirit does not negate the authority of Scripture. What 
does Peter do as one who's now endued with the Holy Spirit? He goes to the prophet Joel and 
he highlights that this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel. In other words, the presence 
of the Spirit does not do away with the Scripture. The presence 
of the Holy Spirit does not do away with deep study of the Scripture, 
but the presence of the Holy Spirit facilitates our understanding 
of the Scripture. Matthew Henry said, Christ's 
scholars never learn above their Bible, and the Spirit is given 
not to supersede the Scriptures, but to enable us to understand 
and improve the Scriptures. Now, in Puritanese, improved 
doesn't mean make it better, but it means to apply it within 
our own lives. So you see this? Peter, now endued 
with the power of the Holy Spirit, doesn't stand as some supercharged 
guru and say, we can dispense with the Scriptures because I've 
got a word from the Lord. Brethren, that is a false approach 
to the Spirit. I suggest that if persons search 
the Scriptures harder than looking for the tongues or the prophecies 
that are given to us here in chapter 2, they would be a whole 
lot better off. And I would suggest that if they 
really study the Scriptures, they'll end up leaving Charismaticism 
and Pentecostalism and be welcomed into Geneva and that Reformed 
community that sees that the eminence or the primary emphasis 
in Acts chapter 2 is not the tongues, but it's Jesus Christ. That's the focal point. That's 
where Peter's going. Now, let's look, secondly, at 
the fulfillment of Joel 2, 28 to 32. Now, the prophet Joel. 
It's always good to have a little bit of understanding as to who 
the prophet is. Now, the book of Joel is notoriously 
difficult to date. Many prophets help us to date 
their prophecy by telling us of certain events, telling us 
of certain kings that were at the throne or on the throne at 
that particular time. Ezekiel, particularly, you can 
trace all of his references to specific numbers and dates. You 
know exactly how old he was when he said such and such. The book 
of Haggai, you can date that with specificity to a particular 
day in our February in, I think, 512 BC. That's pretty good, isn't 
it? You can't do that with Joel. 
I'm most persuaded by those who argue that Joel was an early 
8th century prophet, that he probably lived around the same 
time as Hosea and Amos. However, Joel prophesied in the 
south. And the specific instance of 
Joel's prophecy, the specific occasion for Joel's prophecy 
had been a locust invasion. Locusts had attacked the southern 
kingdom, and locusts can do great damage. And they saw this, and 
Joel interprets this, not only as the judgment of God, not only 
the locusts were the armies of God, but it was a foreshadowing 
of a greater judgment to come that Joel called the Day of the 
Lord. That's the occasion upon which 
Joel prophesies. And in Joel chapter 2, he speaks 
specifically to his readers, or his hearers, and he tells 
them to repent. They need to forsake their sinfulness. 
They need to forsake their wickedness. They need to flee to the Lord 
God Most High. And then he ends chapter 2 with 
a statement concerning the Messianic Age. He's pointing forward to 
this, Acts chapter two. He is telling his readership 
what's going to happen when Messiah comes. The age of the spirit 
will come as well. So that's the prophet. Now let's 
look at his prophecy. And there's four things we ought 
to observe here in verses 17 to 21. First, we ought to notice 
this reference to the last days. Verse 17, it shall come to pass 
in the last days, says God. What are these last days? If you have studied eschatology 
or the doctrine of the last things, you will have come across this 
little phrase, the last days. Now, Joel doesn't say last days, 
he says afterward. Well, I think the way that we 
understand that is Joel speaks of the absolute certainty that 
such things were going to come, and Peter identifies correctly 
this age is called the last days. Calvin takes it this way, as 
most others do as well. But the use of the last days 
in the Scripture typically broadly refers to the times of the Messiah. the times of Jesus Christ, the 
times of the one anointed by God to come and save His people 
from their sins. These last days are initiated 
by the first coming of Jesus Christ. You can jot this down 
or ask me later. I'll send you the notes. I don't 
want to go through each and every one of these texts, but Hebrews 
1 verse 2 and 1 Peter 1 verse 20 tell us the last days were 
initiated by the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. When these 
last days are initiated by Christ, there are certain things that 
are going to happen when He does this. One, to accomplish redemption, 
Hebrews 9.26. To pour out the Spirit, Acts 
2. And as well, these last days 
will be punctuated by perilous times, 2 Timothy 3. In the last days, know that there 
will be perilous times. Also, 2 Peter 3. It is, in fact, 
the time of the Messiah, and it was, in fact, prophesied by 
not only Joel, but Isaiah 2. If you haven't read Isaiah 2 
lately, be encouraged. You just sang it. And what does the prophet say 
in Isaiah 2? That in the latter days, the 
nation shall come to Zion and they'll be taught the law of 
Yahweh. It's the last days, the age of 
Messiah, the age of our Lord Jesus Christ. It has that specific 
or general meaning. It means that time between the 
first and the second coming of our Lord Jesus. You know, you 
meet people that say, well, we're coming up to the last days. It's 
typically understood as a small section of time prior to the 
return of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's inaccurate. That is absolutely 
false. When Paul warns Timothy concerning 
those perilous times, concerning those sorts of people that will 
punctuate the last days, he says, and from such withdraw. Lord 
Timothy, you're living in the last days. You've probably been 
surrounded by these fools. Withdraw from them." How could 
he say that unless the last days were on Timothy? The last days, 
generally speaking, are the time frame between the first and the 
second coming of our Lord Jesus, the time of Messiah. But I'll argue in a few moments, 
when we get to verses 19 and 20, that last days here means 
specifically the last days of the Jewish age. In other words, 
Israel as a body politic is being cut off. And it's not politics 
that it has to do with, it's covenant. It's consistent with 
Jesus' words in Matthew 21, I'm going to take the kingdom from 
you and I'm going to give it to a nation that bears the fruits 
of it. So what we have here is the last 
days of the Jewish age, specifically. Generally, last days is that 
period between the first and the second coming of our Lord 
Jesus Christ. Now notice, that's the reference 
to last days. Notice secondly, the outpouring 
of the Holy Spirit. Again, this is consistent with 
other prophets. Joel's not alone here. Joel is 
simply in line with the rest of the prophets who foretold 
these days concerning Jesus and the great power of the Holy Spirit 
that would be present at that time. This isn't sort of an isolated 
incident. Joel really encapsulates everything. So Peter says this is that or 
this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel. But for instance, 
Isaiah 32, 15, the promise of Jeremiah 31, 31 to 34. Now there, specifically, God 
doesn't say, I'm going to give you my spirit. But when we compare 
it with other statements in the old covenant, that's precisely 
the same thing. He says, I'll write my law in 
your heart. I will put the fear of God in 
your heart, later in Jeremiah 32. He says, and all will receive 
forgiveness and all shall know the Lord from the least of them 
even to the greatest of them. And then the prophet Ezekiel 
chapter 36, it's a testimony concerning God's blessing upon 
people in the new covenant. And what does God say? He says, 
I will take out your old stony heart and I will put in a new 
fleshly heart and I will put my spirit within you. So this 
outpouring of the Holy Spirit again wasn't something, wow, 
we never saw this coming. If you had been reading your 
Bibles, you would have seen it coming. If you had been interpreting 
the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, it would have made perfect 
sense. If you would have listened to Jesus, it would have made 
perfect sense. remain in Jerusalem until you are endued with power 
from on high." And that power would then enable them, that 
Holy Spirit would enable them to fulfill the mission parameters 
of Acts 1a, to be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, 
and to the uttermost parts of the earth. You see, this Holy 
Spirit was promised in the Old Testament. Now, we ought to observe 
the abundance of the Spirit's presence in this outpouring. 
Notice the abundance that we have. I will pour out my Spirit 
on all flesh. Now, I take that as all flesh 
within the New Covenant community. I don't think it refers to the 
pagan or the atheist or the Buddhist or the Muslim or the Hindu, unless 
by God's grace, they leave those false religions and they come 
unto the Savior King. This all flesh is conditioned 
by the context, it is the new covenant people of God. All flesh 
will receive the Holy Spirit. And then notice the parallel 
statements that he gives us with reference to this outpouring. 
He says, your sons, your daughters, your young men, your old men, 
my menservants, and my maidservants. There is an abundance of the 
Spirit's presence. Matthew Poole said, before the 
Spirit was given in lesser measures and comparatively by drops, here 
a little and there a little, now more largely, even to overflow. You see, it's not that there 
was no Holy Spirit in the Old Testament. Again, another idea 
that crops up among Bible-believing Christians. I don't know how 
we get so far off the beaten track, how far off when people 
say, well, the Holy Spirit wasn't present in the Old Testament. 
He absolutely, positively, 100% most surely was. and he indwelt the people of 
God. What's David say in his psalm 
of repentance in Psalm 51? Take not thine holy spirit from 
me. So how do we explain what's happening 
here? It's not as if there was no spirit 
in the Old Testament, but it's like Poole says, there a little, 
here a little, now it's to an overflow. I take it sort of alongside 
of Jeremiah 31, 31 to 34. What's happening in Jeremiah 
31, 31 to 34? What is happening is that the 
prophet is announcing a new covenant, not like the covenant that I 
made with them before, that they broke, but this new covenant 
that God makes with the house of Israel and Judah is one that 
cannot be broken, it is one that has the law of God internalized, 
it is one wherein the spirit comes, and it is one where everyone 
in the new covenant will know the Lord, from the least of them 
to the greatest of them. The same is true with the new 
covenant in terms of the Holy Spirit. See, you had an old covenant 
situation where there were persons that knew the Lord and persons 
that didn't know the Lord. You had an old covenant situation 
where persons had the Holy Spirit and persons didn't have the Holy 
Spirit, but they were still in the old covenant. Not so with 
the New Covenant. When you, by God's grace, believe 
the gospel, guess what you get? You get access to the New Covenant, 
to be sure. You've come to Mount Zion, to 
be sure. You have Christ as Lord and Savior, 
to be sure. And you have the outpouring of 
the Holy Spirit. He is the seal and the guarantee, 
according to Ephesians 1, 13 and 14. So it's both abundant 
and extensive. It is to all people groups within 
the New Covenant community. It's to all persons that confess 
faith in Christ. Your sons, your daughters, your 
young men, your old men, men servants, maid servants. Calvin 
says, with reference to this statement, whereby the prophet 
does signify that there shall be no difference of age or kind, 
but that God admitteth all one with another unto the partaking 
of his grace." And a modern commentator, Daniel Bach, says, even the lowest 
of classes will be blessed across both genders. Look at that. Look 
at verse 18, and on my menservants and on my maidservants. You see, 
in this New Covenant community, we all have the same redemptive 
benefit. This is Paul's point in Galatians 
6, Galatians 3. It's neither male nor female, 
nor barbarian, nor Scythian. We all have redemptive benefit 
in Christ. We're all on an equal footing 
in terms of our justification by faith. You don't have a class 
of people within the New Covenant community that are more justified. 
The most wretched who, by God's grace, believes the gospel is 
as justified as the Apostle Paul. If that isn't an enticement for 
you to lay down arms today and flee to Jesus Christ, I don't 
know what is. You want to be counted righteous? Come to the 
Savior. You want to know the joy of salvation? Look unto Him. You want to know 
what justification, sanctification, and glorification are experientially? Come to the Savior. We have redemptive 
benefit in the person of Christ. Back to Bach, even the lowest 
of classes will be blessed across both genders. Two often ignored 
groups of people, servants and women, will be included. Now note, as we consider the 
outpouring of the Holy Spirit, what's the evidence that this 
has, in fact, occurred? The evidence is the signs and 
the wonders. The evidence confirms that what we are witnessing is, 
in fact, the Holy Spirit, not some aping by the devil, not 
some illegitimate trick show put on by the apostles, but it's 
the signs and wonders accompanying this phenomena that indicates 
that what we are witnessing is, in fact, the truth of God. Notice, 
the evidence of the Spirit's presence is seen. He says, your 
sons and your daughters shall prophesy. Your young men shall 
see visions. Your old men shall dream dreams. Now, does that mean that every 
single person right then and there started having visions 
and dreams? No, I don't think it means that. 
I think the first thing we ought to appreciate is the conscious 
or conspicuous link between Acts 2, Joel 2, and Numbers 11 and 
12. I mentioned this text last week 
or two weeks ago, which, by the way, it was great last week to 
be able to preach in another Reformed Baptist church in BC. 
Praise God Almighty for His goodness and His kindness. That was indeed 
a historic occasion, and we ought to praise God for that. Not that 
I preached there, but that there was a place to preach. It's a 
good thing. Remember Numbers 11 and 12. The Spirit comes upon 
Moses' helpers, and a young man freaks out because Eldad and 
Medad were prophesying, and he tells Joshua. And Joshua tells 
Moses, almost like in the mindset of, we need to stop this. And 
Moses says, wouldn't God let all of his people were prophets? 
It's been revealed or it's been achieved. It's been fulfilled. 
It's been realized in the person and in the work of the Lord Jesus 
and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Again, it doesn't mean 
everybody drained dreams, everybody had visions, everybody prophesied, 
everybody had tongues. Rather, the language... of Joel 
reflecting the language of his present audience is used by Peter 
to demonstrate that the tongues they are hearing, the tongues 
they are witnessing, is a confirmatory sign that the Holy Spirit of 
God is upon them. It is legit, it is reality, it 
is the real deal. Now, I know that this passage 
suggests a lot of questions. Well, he says that women are 
prophesying and women are speaking in tongues and what about in 
the life of the church? Again, we need to make the specific 
distinction between what happens in the normative conduct of the 
church and what is simply described here in terms of the phenomena 
that show us that what's happening is truly God's Holy Spirit. Now, I don't think I said that 
as clear as I thought it in my head, so if you want to know 
why women may have prophesied and spoken tongues then, and 
they don't do so in church now, well, it's easy, because tongues 
shouldn't be spoken in church anyway. We have the written word. We have the completed canon. 
That's a fundamental argument. And as we'll see in just a moment, 
we're going to see that the Old Testament prophesied this as 
well. The whole idea of tongue speaking and prophesying, well, 
the Bible doesn't say, the Bible does say it's supposed to stop. 
I don't know why we just don't hear it. At least certain factions 
within evangelicalism are reformed or, you know, the Charismatics 
or Pentecostals. I don't know why they turn a deaf ear. They're 
chasing tongues and they forget that they have ears and they 
need to listen to the Word of God. Brethren, Scripture gives us 
the tongues and the prophesying in the new covenant situation 
until the covenant documents are completed. Once the covenant 
documents are completed, why would we need revelatory words 
from prophets or from tongue speakers? Prophesying and tongue 
speaking here and in Corinth work for revelation. Once we 
have the revelation of God, we don't need the tongue speakers 
and we don't need the prophets. I'm not suggesting we imprison 
them or jail them. I'm simply saying God doesn't 
continue to give that gift when we have that which is perfect. We have the written word of God, 
the closed canon of scripture. We ought not to be seeking revelatory 
gifts. We're not suggesting that God 
isn't powerful, God can't do great things. We're simply suggesting 
that why in the world would God continue to do this when his 
own word said that he wouldn't? that when the perfect has come, 
we no longer need tongue speakers and prophets within the context 
of the local church. So I think the specific link 
here is between Numbers 11 and 12, Joel 2 and Acts 2. And then notice, thirdly, by 
way of the judgment of God, verses 19 to 20. Some take this as a reference 
to the whole kingdom of Christ. Notice in verse 19, and I will 
show wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath, 
blood and fire and vapor of smoke. The sun shall be turned into 
darkness and the moon into blood before the coming of the great 
and awesome day of the Lord. So some take this as sort of 
symptomatic or typical of the entirety of Christ's church. 
That whole latter day period will be sort of punctuated not 
only by perilous men or perilous times, but there will also be 
these tokens of God's wrath. Some see it as a reference simply 
to the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, 
this particular passage fulfills at the second physical coming 
of the Lord Jesus Christ. As you might imagine, I don't 
think either of those are correct. I think it refers to the destruction 
of Jerusalem in AD 70. The same sort of language is 
employed here that we saw at length in our studies in Matthew 
24. Matthew 24, 29 takes Old Covenant language to speak to 
a specific judgment of God. Peter does the same thing here. 
And as we noted last week or two weeks ago, the presence of 
tongues signify not only the communication of the great things 
of God, but judgment upon Israel. The prophet Isaiah said, when 
you hear men of strange tongues in your land, you'll know that 
this is a judgment. Israel, as a body politic, as 
the old covenant people of God, are coming to a conclusion. They 
are going to be cut off. You see this here in Acts 2, 
19 and 20. This is why Stephen is on trial 
in Acts 6, 13 and 14, when Paul stands before the Jews in Acts 
chapter 22, Everything is fine until Paul says, God called me 
to go preach to the Gentiles. Then they flip out. It's mayhem. 
They oppose him. They target him. You see in Acts 
chapter 28, Paul specifically says that he's on trial for, 
or he's in chains for the hope of Israel. He's speaking about 
the promises of God in the Old Testament that are fleshed out 
through the Israel of God, Jesus Christ, and those who are the 
Israel of God by virtue of their union with him. And then later 
in Acts chapter 28, he applies Isaiah's prophecy to ethnic Jews 
that had come to hear him. You have ears but you don't hear, 
you have eyes that don't see, you have hearts that are hardened, 
and you are under judgment. This language, this apocalyptic 
language, is instructive concerning the fall of kingdoms. We see 
in this particular passage that Peter links the coming of the 
Lord Jesus Christ, his life, his death, his resurrection, 
that real sort of end to the old covenant system when our 
Lord on the cross says, it is finished. But, then it's visible 
manifestation or demonstration in the destruction of Jerusalem 
in AD 70. Now, some will say, that's just 
a stretch. This is exactly what the apostle says in Hebrews 8. 
Hebrews 8.13, he says, in that he says a new covenant, he has 
made the first obsolete. When did God make the first covenant 
obsolete? When Jesus died. I mean, as we 
said this morning, all the events associated with Christ, life, 
death, resurrection. What invalidates or what abrogates 
or what brings to completion or rather fruition or fulfillment 
best? The old covenant. It's Christ. 
But notice 8.13 again. In that he says a new covenant, 
he has made the first obsolete. Now, what is becoming obsolete 
and growing old is ready to vanish away. You have to understand 
the significance of this statement in the context of the book of 
Hebrews. The author, Paul, is writing prior to the destruction 
of Jerusalem in AD 70. The apostasy that he's dealing 
with in Hebrews 6 and Hebrews 10 isn't what we oftentimes interpret 
it as. We think, well, you know, I forgot 
to pray on Thursday. I must be an apostate. Or, you 
know, I said a thing I shouldn't have said. I must be an apostate. 
That's not what Hebrews 6 and 10 are speaking about. Hebrews 
6 and 10 are speaking to Jews who have professed faith in Jesus 
and have left Jesus and gone back to Moses. That's the apostasy. That's the falling away. That's 
the defection. When we have the once-for-all 
sacrifice of Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin 
of the world, and we say, eh, I'm going to go back and bring 
my goat and cut its throat and hand it to the priest so that 
he can send it up to the Lord. That's the apostasy of Hebrews 
6 and 10. Now, I don't want to take the 
teeth out of Hebrews 6 and 10. If you continue in unrepentant 
sin, you continue in rebellion against God Almighty, you don't 
forsake it, you don't flee from it. Yeah, you may just be an 
apostate. But in Hebrews, the apostle is 
writing to Jewish believers or professors of faith in Jesus 
that are tempted to turn back. And so this statement, how does 
it have significance? He has made the first obsolete 
in all those events associated with Christ. Now, what is becoming 
obsolete? What does that mean? The temple 
that was standing, the sacrifices that are under discussion, the 
very things that they are seeing with their own eyes, what is 
becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. When does it vanish away? When 
Jerusalem is surrounded by armies, when the city is sacked, when 
the city is destroyed. We said this morning, it's not 
a political thing. It's not just a historical observation. It's not just to suggest that 
the Romans had a superior army. It was covenantal. It was Matthew 
21. I'm taking the kingdom from you 
and I'm giving it to a nation bearing the fruits consistent 
with it. It's the Church of Jesus Christ that is the Zion of God. It is the Church of Jesus Christ 
that is the pinnacle of the promises of God. We don't wait for us 
to be raptured so God can now get busy with his special people. 
The special people, Old Covenant Israel, entered the rank and 
file of every other nation at AD 70. They're just like the 
rest of us. They need Jesus. They need to 
believe, they need to turn from their sins, and they need to 
come to the true Mount Zion, which is Christ Jesus the Lord 
and the Church. That's the point of the Bible. And some say, well, you know, 
why would Joel speak about AD 70? He was living before Assyria 
and Babylon. Because AD 70 was the decisive 
event. God always promised that after 
Babylon, there would be a reconvening. The Jews would return to Judah 
from whence Messiah would come. That was always stipulated. But 
AD 70 is it. A.D. 70 is the final application 
of the covenant curses of God in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 
28. It's a closed system. It's a 
closed book. Some will point to this same 
sort of apocalyptic language in Revelation 6.12 and say, Butler, 
you're obviously wrong. Well, Butler's got something 
under his sleeve. Butler thinks Revelation has 
to do with the same thing. When we see the contrast in the 
book of Revelation, why is New Jerusalem glorious? Because Old 
Jerusalem is apostate. It's the divorce of the harlot, 
and the harlot there isn't pagan Rome. It's apostate Judaism, 
and it's the marriage of the bride to his church. And this 
was always God's plan, the promise from the beginning. Abraham, 
look north, look south, look east, look west. This is the 
world you will inherit. Men from every tribe, tongue, 
people, and nation. This is why Paul can pronounce 
peace upon the Israel of God in Galatians chapter 6. It's 
not ethnic Jews, it's spiritual Jews, those who have been saved, 
those whose hearts are circumcised by regeneration, those who have 
come out of darkness into marvelous light. The Bible is a blessed 
and beautiful unity. And may I go one step farther 
and say that this shows us that the proper interpretation of 
the Old Testament is the Christian interpretation. The Jews got 
it wrong. This is the first instance of 
many in the book of Acts where we see that the true interpreters 
of Old Covenant Scripture isn't the Jews. It's the Christians. It's Paul. It's Peter. Their 
hermeneutic brought out by the Holy Spirit in their conversion 
gave them the lens to properly interpret that Joel, too, was 
speaking about the times of Jesus when he would pour out the Holy 
Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Isn't it beautiful? and a wonderful 
and a glorious thing. Chrysostom saw the fulfillment 
in both events, AD 70 and in the world to come, or in the 
second coming. He said, in these words, he speaks 
both of the judgment to come and of the taking of Jerusalem. 
Now, I should be candid and say most of the guys that I'll cite 
in terms of interpreters that support this view see both AD 
70 and they see the second coming. That's fine with me. Modern commentators 
don't even mention AD 70. This isn't some whacked out partial 
preterist hobby horse. AD 70, according to the book 
of Hebrews, according to the book of Revelation, according 
to the Olivet Discourse, is a most monumental significant event. 
And to just bypass it, pretend that it didn't happen or that 
it really wasn't being spoken about by the apostles here, when 
they use the same sort of apocalyptic imagery and language and apply 
it to this particular situation, I think that's irresponsible. 
You may not be completely convinced that this is all A.D. 70. I am. 
If you think it's A.D. 70 and the second coming, fine. 
But just do not neglect the reality that A.D. 70 is certainly in 
the horizon. This was a judgment of cosmic 
significance upon the covenants of God. John Owen saw it only 
as AD 70. He says, the things here spoken 
of in Acts 2 were those signs, prodigies, and judgments which 
God showed unto and exercised the people of the Jews withal 
before the destruction of Jerusalem, even those foretold by our Lord 
Jesus in Matthew 24. Now, for those of you who don't 
know John Owen, I mean, he's kind of, you know, Spurgeon called 
him the prince of the Puritans. He was no lightweight. He certainly 
was wrong in some things. He remained a Paedo-Baptist, 
so I can't say, you know, he was the infallible and errant 
John Owen, but he was certainly a man of great renown in terms 
of his learning and understanding. And he just, you know, in another 
context, the commentary on Hebrews 3 just, you know, matter-of-factly 
relates that what Peter's speaking to here isn't the second coming, 
it is speaking to the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. So I suggest 
that's how the passage in Acts 2 is to be understood. So we 
have the reference of the last days, the outpouring of the Spirit, 
the judgment of God. Now notice finally in this passage the promise 
of salvation. The promise of salvation. Verse 
21, and it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name 
of the Lord shall be saved. You know, there's certain passages 
that preachers sometimes joke, not joke in a ha-ha sort of way, 
or maybe just quip, that preach themselves. I think I've heard 
Albert N. Martin say, or at least somebody 
told me, he said, you don't preach the end of Romans 8. You just 
read it. I mean, how do you preach what 
Paul says there? It's incredible. Just read it. 
Well, this is one of those statements, and it shall come to pass that 
whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. It's 
a beautiful statement, isn't it? You know what it shows us? 
It shows us that both for Joel and Peter, salvation is by grace 
alone, through faith alone, in Christ Jesus alone. Notice for 
Joel. For Isaiah, for Ezekiel, for 
Jeremiah, they didn't teach that, you know, you need to just pull 
up your bootstraps and try a bit harder. No, you need to come 
to the Lord. You need to believe on the name 
of the Lord. Not whoever calls and works with 
reference to the name of the Lord shall be saved, but whoever 
calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. If you have not 
called on the name of the Lord, may I suggest that Acts 2.21 
is a text speaking to you to this morning. You may not have 
got all the intricacies of the verse 19 and 20 application to 
AD 70. I'll grant that to you. You may 
not have gotten all the intricacies about the anti-charismatic Pentecostal 
rant or the dispensational rant. I'll grant that. But you cannot 
miss the significance of verse 21. Now, when Peter says, whoever, 
I'm not certain that Peter at this point would have included 
Gentiles. Remember in Acts 10, he's still a bit anky about going 
to see Cornelius. God has to give him this vision 
and had to give it to him three times. This happened three times, 
Peter says. Man, Peter, come on, one was 
not enough? You didn't get it right away? 
At this point, I'm not sure whoever would have included Gentiles, 
but it will in Acts 10. But you know who definitely sees 
this text as inclusive of Gentiles? The Apostle Paul. And Peter did 
too. I'm not suggesting he didn't, 
but here on the occasion in Acts 2, it may be argued that he didn't. But in Romans chapter 10, We 
have that beautiful statement in verse 9, that if you confess 
with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that 
God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. Listen to 
this passage. I know there are some of you 
who do not profess faith in Christ. I know there are some of you 
who do not know what it means to believe in Christ. I know 
there are some of you that perhaps have been a bit confused about 
this reality in the past. Listen to the clarity and the 
simplicity and the beauty of the words. Hear what the apostle 
says. If you confess with your mouth 
the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised 
him from the dead, you will be saved. What does it mean to believe? We often point to John 3, when 
Jesus says, just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, 
so also must the Son of Man be lifted up. What was the way of 
salvation for those bitten by the serpents in the book of Numbers? 
They looked and lived. What's Jesus saying in John 3? 
Look and live. It's on the heels of that that 
we get, for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten 
Son that whoever believes in Him will have everlasting life. You know, don't go home today 
and rack your brain over AD 70. I really wish everybody got it 
and understood it and said, wow, boy, it makes sense of the entirety 
of the Bible. But go home and rack your brain 
today over this fundamental thing. Have I called on the name of 
the Lord? Am I saved? Am I going to heaven? Horrible 
things happen in this world on a daily basis. Who should know 
this better than 21st century people that carry a horrible 
thing conveyor in their pockets everywhere they go? We get notifications 
all day long about horrible things. Horrible thing, in Texas, on 
Friday, through the phone. Horrible thing, you know, all 
over the place, all the time, through the phone. We know this. We know that this is not, you 
know, a promise, or there's not a promise of longevity for each 
and every one of us. So go home today and ask yourself 
the question, or better yet, ask yourself right now, have 
I called on the name of the Lord? Is He mine? Am I His? Do I know 
forgiveness? Have I been clothed in a righteousness 
not my own? Am I dressed in that righteousness 
not my own? Am I ready to confess with Edward 
Mote my hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness? I dare not trust the sweetest 
frame, but I wholly lean on Jesus' name. This is what Paul tells 
us. If you confess with your mouth 
the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised 
him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one 
believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession 
is made unto salvation. For the scripture says, whoever 
believes on him will not be put to shame. Other translations 
render it will not be disappointed. Can I get a yay and amen from 
all of God's people there? Have any of us ever said, wow, 
I'm disappointed I ever came to Jesus. My life is terrible, 
it's miserable, I hate it. No, that's not the response of 
the people of God in Zion. They say things like, man, I 
wish I'd have came 20 years earlier, because I did a whole lot of 
terrible things in that 20 year stretch. It's been tough. There's been trials, but Christ 
has always been right there with me in the boat. Doesn't he teach 
the disciples that? Disciples get on the boat, and 
there's waves, and there's wind, and there's calamity and tumult, 
and our Lord is found sleeping in the boat, and they come and 
say, don't you care about us? Save us. What's the take-home 
message? Christ in the boat doesn't mean 
that the waves will never stir. Christ in the boat doesn't mean 
there'll never be strong winds. Christ in the boat may oftentimes 
even bring such things. When we stand for Christ in this 
world, according to the Apostle in 2 Timothy, all who desire 
to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. We have 
another reason for horrible things to happen to us. and living in 
the secular West, it may be coming more rapidly than we ever anticipated. 
I mean, they're constantly pushing ungodly, anti-God stuff down 
our throat. They don't want us to just not 
disapprove. They want us to embrace it and 
accept it and rejoice in it. Brethren, there are perilous 
times that punctuate the period between the first and the second 
coming of the Lord Jesus. But for those who, by the grace 
of God, come to Jesus, they'll never be put to shame. They'll 
never be disappointed. There'll never be a time in the 
life of a true believer who says, man, I wish I wouldn't have come 
to Jesus. It's been terrible. It's been horrible. That's not 
the way our people die. Our people, one man said, die. They die well. If you have not 
come, listen to the apostle's words. He says, for there is 
no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over 
all is rich to all who call upon him. Here comes Joel, for whoever 
calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. It's a beautiful 
and a wonderful and a glorious statement used by our Apostle 
Paul in Romans 10 to continue his explanation of the glorious 
gospel of Jesus Christ. It's a wonderful thing that Peter, 
the Apostle, addresses Jerusalem sinners. the very city that crucified 
our Lord and Savior. He tells them that whoever calls 
on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Now, before we end, 
you've got to understand something very significant and very awesome. In the Joel prophecy, who's the 
Lord? It's Yahweh, isn't it? It's Yahweh. Who's the Lord in 
Acts 2.21? It's Jesus. It's the rest of the sermon, 
22 to 39. Peter's going to tell us how 
that's the case. How is he Lord? How is he now 
object of faith? How is he the one upon whose 
name men can call and be saved? One commentator says there's 
no connection between 14 to 21 and 22 to 39. They're disparate. They're not connected. They couldn't 
be more closely connected. After saying, and it shall come 
to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be 
saved, Peter now tells us how Jesus is the Lord, upon whose 
name you must call or you will not be saved. The emphasis in 
the New Testament upon calling on the name of the Lord is a 
target to Christ. It is the object Christ. Not 
to suggest that Yahweh and Jesus are not identifiable. One God, 
three persons, but it's showing us in this new covenant setting 
that Yahweh is Jesus and this is the one that we need to believe 
in. That's probably not Yahweh is God who exists as Father, 
Son, Holy Spirit. Typically, we refer to Yahweh, 
or we have in our mind that He's the Father. And so what Peter 
is going to show us is the glory of Jesus Christ, according to 
His person and work, wherein He is the name upon whom men 
call. So, brethren, those are some 
things that we ought to consider. The blessedness of forgiveness, 
just to rehash a few things, and then we'll close. The blessedness 
of forgiveness seen in the restoration of the apostles, the wonderful 
consistency of the Bible. You know, Peter got Joel right. The Jews didn't get Joel right. The glorious presence of the 
Holy Spirit, I did mention and I want to make sure I show you 
that text in Daniel 9. We can turn to Daniel 9 where 
we have a specific word concerning the end of the prophetic word. Daniel 9, verses 24 to 27, is 
referred to as the 70 weeks. It's a prophecy, and it is all 
confined to the first coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. I think 
it's demonstrable through some exegesis of the passage. We simply 
don't have time. But notice, I know that seems 
weaselly for a pastor to do that. We don't have time. Well, I wanted 
to hear it. Well, then we can talk later. We really don't have 
time, because if you want to hear it, 20 others want to get 
home to their roast. But notice in verse 24, 70 weeks 
are determined for your people and for your holy city. Now, 
here's the things Messiah will accomplish in his first coming. 
One, to finish the transgression. Two, to make an end of sins. 
Three, to make reconciliation. Four, iniquity. Four, to bring 
in everlasting righteousness. Five, note this, to seal up vision 
and prophecy. to seal up vision and prophecy. Doesn't that tell us that vision 
and prophecy will be sealed up? It won't be continuing into the 
21st century. Once the New Testament canon 
is completed, once vision and prophecy have fulfilled the intended 
purpose for which God gave it, it will be sealed up. Because 
those who have the Old Testament and New Testament don't need 
to sort of look into the clouds and get a word from the Lord. 
They need to study their Bibles more. Everybody wants a word 
from the Lord. How many of you have studied 
Joel? How many Charismatics or Pentecostals 
that are telling you busily what the Lord told them have actually 
read Amos? Who could give you any idea of 
who Amos was? Ask the next person that said 
to you, well, the Lord spoke to me. Has he ever spoken to 
you in Leviticus? Can you tell me how to deal with 
that yellow hair covered sore? Can you tell me the laws of quarantine? You know what I'm saying? People, 
oh, the Lord spoke to me, or I get tongues, or I get prophecy, 
I get whatever. They don't even know the Bible. Why would God 
give you more when you don't know what there is? But Daniel 
tells us by inspiration of the Spirit, there's a day coming 
for vision and prophecy to be sealed up. Not in terms of no 
Bible, but in terms of these particular gifts given to communicate 
the mind of God. We have the best gift given by 
God in a completed Bible. It's a beautiful thing, and to 
anoint the most holy. I would argue, if we continued 
on in verses 25 to 27, you'll see the destruction of Jerusalem 
in AD 70 right there, too, as well. So brethren, we see the 
glorious presence of the Holy Spirit. The Messianic age is 
characterized by an abundance and extensive influence of the 
Spirit of God. The outpouring of the Spirit 
is experienced by all those who are in the New Covenant community 
and the evidence of the Spirit's presence in this instance. And 
again, in chapters 8 and in chapters 10, the evidence of the Spirit's 
presence is through the signs and wonders. But even in this 
passage, you have to note that the signs and wonders give way 
to something. What do they give way to? The 
apostolic preaching of the cross. That's what 22 to 39 is. He doesn't say, well, let's all 
peel off into little groups and encourage one another on how 
to get tongues. Let's just prime the pump and start saying things, 
and maybe we'll get more of these. That's not the point in 22 to 
39. The point is Christ lived, Christ 
died, Christ has been raised, Christ has ascended to the right 
hand of the Father, and God has made this Jesus, whom you've 
crucified, both Lord and Christ. You see, these signs and wonders, 
2, 8, and 10, were necessary to confirm that what the Holy 
Spirit or the coming of the Holy Spirit was legit. Once we've 
got that confirmed, why would we continue to look for the signs 
and wonders? Why are we a people that are so craven for signs 
and wonders? Why isn't the normal and the 
ordinary okay for us? We all have to be on fire. No, we all just have to get out 
of bed and be faithful. I got a burden for Jesus. Just 
show up at work and do what you're supposed to do. The normal, the 
ordinary, the mundane is as blessed and sanctioned by our Lord as 
Peter standing up with reference to men in opposition and bringing 
the heat. Just be faithful. We don't need 
to crave signs and wonders. We need to read Joel. We need 
to read Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. Keep going, 
your roast is going to burn. All the way to Revelation, we 
need to read and understand and know our God. We need to be a 
prayerful people. God uses precious few in the 
history of the world to actually do monumental things. The church 
isn't littered with Martin Luther's and with John Calvin's. The church 
is littered with regular, normal, ordinary folk who get out of 
bed, who do what they're supposed to do, and they do it faithfully, 
they do it consistently, they do it with discipline for 40, 
50, 60, 70 years, and then they die or breathe their last, and 
they go to be with Jesus. I can't think anything better 
than that. Don't crave signs and wonders. Read your Bibles. And then finally, go to Christ. Whoever calls on the name of 
the Lord shall be saved. What a great statement. What 
a glorious truth. What a wonderful thing. If you 
have not called on the name of the Lord, call. Sometimes you'll 
see those churches where they have an altar call. They tell 
people you need to come forward and you need to sign a card or 
you need to bow your head and close your eye and raise your 
hand. You don't need to do that. You just need to call on the 
name of the Lord. We used to preach in this place called the 
Bible Tabernacle. It was a guy who got converted. 
He had a bunch of money and he set up this great big tent in 
Santa Clarita. And it was dudes that got out 
of prison and they needed a place to stay for a while. And we would 
go and we would preach. And afterwards, sometimes the 
guys would say, or at least on one occasion, this guy said, 
you know, so many people would have gotten saved if you would 
have had an altar call. You know, that's just terrible 
theology. But so many people would have 
gotten saved if you had just had an altar call. We would say 
things like, our God's able to save people when they stay in 
their seats. He doesn't need them to walk 
forward because he sent his son to go gather them. It's a glorious, 
wondrous thing. The beauty of the gospel isn't 
that men accept Jesus into their heart, it's that God accepts 
miserable sinners through the atoning work of our Lord Jesus 
Christ. Well, let us pray. Father, we 
thank you for your Word. We thank you for the clarity 
of Acts 2 and Joel 2. We thank you for the consistency 
and the unity of Holy Scripture. And I pray that you would give 
us wisdom concerning such things, give us grace to marvel at the 
glory of God Almighty, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, all three 
persons present so conspicuously in this second chapter of Acts. 
And may it be the case that here and elsewhere and all throughout 
the earth today, sinners would call on the name of the Lord. 
And we pray this through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. Well, 
let's turn in our Trinity hymnal to the doxology, or perhaps you 
know it by heart, and we'll stand and we'll close our service by 
singing the doxology and then a benediction from the Word of 
God. Rays of the moon, all blessings 
flow. Rays in all regions. Raise it up, all ye heav'nly 
host. Raise, Father, Son, and Holy 
Ghost. The Lord bless you and keep you. 
The Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. 
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen. Well, please be seated.