Walking With Christ

⚓ Floatie:  Cut to the Heart

Acts 2:36–41  (36)Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”  (37)Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”  (38)And Peter said to them, “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 Holy Spirit.  (39)For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.”  (40)And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.”  (41)So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.(ESV)

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✒️ Forge:  The Word That Cuts

Peter preached Christ crucified and risen, and the crowd was “cut to the heart.”  This is the living Word of God at work:  “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword” (Hebrews 4:12).

Notice the flow:

• Conviction — they are pierced by the Spirit, as Jesus promised (John 16:8).
• Response — “What shall we do?” echoes the question of the Philippian jailer later:  “What must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30).
• Command — repentance and baptism, echoing John the Baptist’s call (Matthew 3:2) but now rooted in Christ’s finished work.
• Promise — the Spirit is for them, their children, and even those “far off,” anticipating the gospel reaching Gentiles (Ephesians 2:13).

Peter didn’t soften his words.  He pointed directly:  “This Jesus whom you crucified.”  The same crowd that shouted “Crucify him!” now cries, “What shall we do?”

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⚒️ Anvil:  The Challenge of Repentance

Repentance is not regret.  It is a turning—a change of direction.  Baptism is not magic water, but a public act of death and resurrection with Christ (Romans 6:3–4).  Too often we want the Spirit’s power without the Spirit’s demand for repentance.  But the promise is tied to obedience:  repent, believe, be baptized.

Three thousand souls in one day did not come from clever strategy.  It came from conviction and submission.  That pattern still stands.

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🔥 Ember:  A Word for Today

We live in a “crooked generation” no less than Peter’s hearers.  The answer is the same:  repentance, forgiveness, and the Spirit’s gift.  What would happen if today’s church preached with such clarity that hearers were cut to the heart?  Not entertained, not inspired—cut.

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🌿 Covenant Triumph:  A Harvest Begins

At Sinai, Israel received the law written on stone.  At Pentecost, the Spirit wrote on hearts (Jeremiah 31:33).  Three thousand died at Sinai when the law was broken (Exodus 32:28).  Three thousand lived at Pentecost when the Spirit was given.  The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life (2 Corinthians 3:6).  This was not just a sermon—it was the start of the harvest.

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[⚓ Floatie] [✒️ Forge] [⚒️ Anvil] [🔥 Ember] [🌿 Covenant Triumph]
This post follows the Forge Baseline Rule—layered truth for the discerning remnant.