Welcome and thank you for taking a bible break to test your knowledge of God's word. This week's question:

Jesus told Peter that Satan wanted to "sift you like wheat" (Luke 22:31), and as the Roman cohort came into the garden of Gethsemane, all of His disciples scattered and Jesus was arrested and taken to the courtyard of the high priest where Peter denied Jesus three times. Peter wept bitterly about that, but after Jesus was crucified, he said, "I am going fishing" (John 21:3), which would seem to indicate that it was time to go back to life as they once had known it since Jesus is now dead. Then Jesus appears again and asks them to cast the net on the right side of the boat only to catch a large number of fish and John recognizes Him as the Lord and Peter casts himself into the sea and swims to shore to be asked and told by Jesus to "Simon, son of John, do you love Me? Tend My Lambs" (John 21:15). Then Jesus tells Peter that he would be girded and taken where he did not want to go signifying the type of death that he would glorify God and then, "Follow Me!" (John 21:18-19). What would Peter do?

That brings us to our question, "What did Peter tell those who crucified Jesus?". Jesus told His disciples that they would be "baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." (Acts 1:5). They were also commanded not to leave Jerusalem and then they asked Him, "Lord is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel? He said to them, 'It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth." (Acts 1:6-8).

Then they returned to Jerusalem and Peter stands up among the eleven disciples with about an hundred and twenty and begins to strengthen them by recounting from the Old Testament scriptures how the events unfolded the way they did and then they drew lots for the the next apostle who had also witnessed all that Jesus did from the baptism of John until the day He was taken up away from them and the lot fell to Matthias (Acts 1:15-26).

When the day of Pentecost had come, which was the first day of the week, a noise from heaven sounding like a violent wind filled the house where the apostles were sitting and something like tongues of fire rested on each of them and they began speaking in different languages which astonished the multitude of devout men from every nation who had gathered as commanded for the holiday and were astonished that each one heard them speak in their own language, recognizing these men as Galileans, or untrained men and then they asked, "What does this mean?" (Acts 2:1-12).

Some mocked saying they were drunk but then Peter stood up to tell those who crucified Jesus, "Men of Judea, and all who you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give heed to my words. For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day; but this is that which was spoken through the prophet Joel: 'And is shall be in the last days,' God says, 'That I will pour forth of My spirit upon all mankind; and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men s shall dream dreams;'" (Acts 2:14-17). Then Peter continues to convict them that they had crucified Jesus, the Son of God, "Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know-this Man, delivered up by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. And God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it is impossible for Him to be held in its power." (Acts 2:22-24).

He finishes his sermon by saying, "Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified. Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, 'What shall we do?' " (Acts 2:36-37).

Now think about this for a minute, they finally understood that Jesus was not an impostor, but was really the Christ, the Son of God, and they had Him crucified! What could one do, but wait for the wrath of God, right? Wrong. Peter continues to tell them what they can do to release themselves from a stain of sin that one would think could never be removed, "And Peter said to them, 'Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children, and for all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God shall call to Himself.' And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, 'Be saved from this wicked and perverse generation!'" " (Acts 2:38-40).

So, there we have the answer to our question, as Peter convicted them that thy had crucified the Christ, the Son of God, and then told them how they could have this grave sin removed by repenting, confessing Jesus and being baptized in that watery grave (Romans 6:1-6) for the washing away of their sins (Acts 22:16) to save themselves from that wicked and perverse generation. "So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and there were added that day about three thousand souls." (Acts 2:41) "And day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved." (Acts 2:46-47). There was no vote taken on their membership, no show of hands, as the Lord knows the hearts of men and was adding them according to His good pleasure!