Series Acts

Peter's Answer and the People's Response

Acts 2:14-41 · Kaká Monteiro · May 31, 2026

The fisherman who denied becomes a preacher, the Scriptures that explain the fire, the people cut to the heart

The central idea

“Christ is risen and he is Lord, and that demands an answer from each of us: "What shall we do?"”

The Spirit turned a coward into a herald and a crowd into a church. Peter didn't soften it: he said they had crucified Jesus, but God raised him and made him Lord and Messiah. When the truth gets into the heart, we can no longer pretend we didn't hear it, and God's answer is an invitation: repent and be baptized.

The message in 3 movements

01
The Spirit turns cowards into heralds.
The same Peter who denied Jesus to a servant girl now speaks to thousands without trembling. Our past often steals our courage, but the Spirit changes that. And he doesn't come only on one leader, as at Sinai: he comes on everyone. No one is a spectator of God's work.
02
The Word explains what God is doing.
Faced with the unexplainable, Peter opens Joel and the Psalms. The cross didn't take God by surprise: it was the hand of wicked men and, at the same time, God's set purpose. And the resurrection has eyewitnesses: it was impossible for death to hold the Holy One.
03
The truth demands a response.
A heart "cut" is the mark of the Spirit's conviction. Whoever is touched doesn't run from God: they run to him. Repenting is changing direction; baptism is declaring publicly that the old has gone. The promise reaches us, who were far off.

Reading the text · Acts 2:14-41

Acts 2:14-21 · This is what Joel spoke of

Peter stands up with the Eleven: no one is drunk, it's only nine in the morning. This is what the prophet Joel said: God would pour out his Spirit on all people, sons and daughters, young and old, servants men and women. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

Acts 2:22-36 · God has made him Lord and Messiah

Jesus of Nazareth, accredited by God with miracles, was handed over by God's deliberate plan and crucified by you. But God raised him, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him, as David announced in Psalm 16. Exalted to God's right hand, he has poured out the Spirit. God has made him both Lord and Messiah.

Acts 2:37-41 · What shall we do?

When they hear this, they are cut to the heart: "Brothers, what shall we do?" Peter answers: repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Spirit. The promise is for you, your children and all who are far off. About three thousand are baptized.

Questions for the group

To open: tell about a time you heard something (a conversation, a piece of news, a truth) and afterwards couldn't pretend you didn't know.

1
The Peter who denied Jesus to a servant girl preached to thousands a few weeks later. Is there a past failure that still steals your courage? What does Peter's story say to you about it?
2
Faced with something unexplainable, Peter opened the Scriptures. When you don't understand what is happening, in your life or in the world, what do you turn to first?
3
The cross was the work of human hands and, at the same time, God's plan. How does that truth help you face injustice and situations that seem out of control?
4
"What shall we do?" Repenting is changing direction. In which area of your life has God been asking for a change of direction? What would the first step be?

Key passages

Joel 2:28-32: "I will pour out my Spirit on all people… and everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." The text Peter uses to explain Pentecost.
Psalm 16:10: "You will not… let your faithful one see decay." David died and was buried; only Jesus's tomb is empty.
Psalm 110:1: "The Lord says to my lord: Sit at my right hand." The Old Testament verse most quoted in the New: Jesus is greater than David.

To close

A step for this week. Bring the question "What shall I do?" to an area where God has been speaking to you: asking forgiveness, changing direction, a step of obedience. If you already believe and haven't been baptized, talk to a leader about it.

Prayer. Thank God that the promise reached us, who were far off. Ask the Spirit to turn our fears into boldness and, when we hear the Word, to make our hearts run to God instead of away from him.