Pierced To The Heart

Introduction

A good many of you were here last Sunday morning when we emphasized a single verse in the scripture that’s so very important in the study of the book of Hebrews. Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. I don’t know if this Sunday sermon will go over as well as that one did, but we’re going to do something a little bit in the same vein. We’re going to be looking specifically at one verse of Scripture. Did you memorize this one this week? Hebrews 10 35. Is it on your radar? And now we’re going to give you another one this week. No, I’m not going to do this perpetually. But we’re just going to try this a couple weeks in a row. Acts 2, verse 37.

That’s the verse that I want to bring to your attention this morning. It’s an important verse in a number of respects. Acts 2, as you’ll remember, is that dramatic day, 50 days after Jesus’ death on the cross, where the first sermon about the resurrected Lord was preached. And the conclusion of this sermon had stung significantly. Therefore, let all the house of Israel, verse 36, let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ. This Jesus whom you crucified. Tim talked about the nature of his death. You caused it, he said. You not only were behind his execution, but he died for you. For your sins.

Among many in that massive crowd that day that had gathered when they heard the mighty rushing wind and the Holy Spirit descending upon the apostles, many who had gathered into that area to hear this sermon, had this response. Now, when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart.

They inquired further. Men and brethren, what shall we do? They were instructed in verse 38 in perhaps the more familiar text. Let every one of you repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, on the basis of who he is as resurrected Savior and Lord and King and Judge. On the basis of all that he now is, seated at the right hand of the Majesty on high, and I’m going throughout the New Testament, things that tell us about what his name means. On the basis of who Jesus is, the Son of God, seated at the right hand of the Majesty on high, on the basis of his name, this Jesus whom you crucified, repent. Turn from the destructive sin, the destructive ways in your life, and be immersed in likeness of his death and his burial.

Rising to walk in newness of life. Repent and be baptized, every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Wow. You’re guilty, but you’re going to get something if you’ll do this. If you will give your loyalty to the Lord, you’re going to get the gift, the long-awaited promise of salvation. To everyone who believes. As he has quoted Joel 2 in this sermon in Acts 2 and verse 21. To all who believe, and the extensions of that go beyond the Jews, but to Gentiles as well, as he goes on to say, for the promise is for you. It’s for your descendants. It’s for your children. And for all who are afar off.

Remember we had a sermon on that recently, a two-part sermon, where we talked about the Gentiles ultimately in Acts chapter 10. As many as the Lord our God shall call to himself. And with many other words, he solemnly testified. There were other things involved in this sermon. With many other words, he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, Be saved from this perverse generation. So then those who had gladly received the word, they were baptized, and there were added that day about 3,000 souls. Okay, the focus. Acts 2 and verse 37. And the phrase in particular in that verse, they were pierced to the heart. That is so very important, it occurs to me. A strong reaction in the mind. If we could only get people right there.

That’s the key. That’s why I’m preaching this sermon. If we can only get people here, everything else will follow. Everything else that is necessary will take care of itself. There is no evidence whatsoever that there is any quibbling about the requirements once they ask the question. Men and brethren, what shall we do? There’s a no, but I’m not really sure about that. I’m not sure if I’m going to go there. There’s no evidence that there’s any quibbling with the apostles about what came next after they asked the question, what shall we do? And the reason why is because they were pierced to the heart.

The Greek phrase carries the idea of the heart being ripped in two parts. I’ve not had any heart surgery. It’s pretty severe, I guess, if you have it. Some of you have. The idea of the heart being torn in two. This is the very essence of what we’re all about. Of course, it’s talking about our minds, but it’s talking about the idea of emotionally being sawn asunder. They were pierced to the heart. You may also know, and this is not new information. Many of you have heard this before, that the same or similar phrase is found in the Greek in two other passages in the book of Acts. In Acts 5 and verse 33, in Acts chapter 7 and verse 54. But in those cases where the heart was pierced or cut to the quick, some translations say, it was not in a favorable response to God’s message, but was actually in an emotional rejection, an emotional opposition to the message that they were hearing.

Yes, they were struck in their minds or in their hearts, but it was in opposition to the message, and ultimately in Acts 7, that’s where Stephen is stoned when they rushed upon him as a result of that conviction of their heart. But it’s a strong emotion that we’re talking about. It is the kind of heart, as I think about a biblical example of someone pierced to the heart, it’s the kind of heart evidenced in Josiah. These were dark times for God’s people. Babylonian destruction was just a few decades away. They had gone far from the Lord. The law of God, the book of the law, had been lost. Nobody knew where it was. And once it had been found, and the law had been read, and when Josiah the king realized that his people were, this young boy king realized his people were a far cry from what God had instructed them to be, it says, Because your heart was tender.

And you humbled yourself before God when you heard his words against this place and against its inhabitants, and because you humbled yourself before me and tore your clothes and wept before me. I have heard you, declares the Lord. Josiah had just such a heart. I listened to a sermon earlier this week, sort of happened along it by chance as I was seeing if Chris Emerson had posted something on his Facebook about the fact that he was moving. And Chris is a good friend of mine, and he’s moving to Lyndale, Texas, to preach there. And I was seeing what was posted on his Facebook page because I’ve known about this for a while. And so when I was going over there on Monday morning, I saw instead a sermon that one of the members had posted that Chris preached.

1. What Prevents Being Pierced to the Heart

Called Why Should I Care? I recommend that you hear that sermon. It was fantastic. Why should I care? And he begins that sermon by talking about really the opposite question. Instead of why should I care? And that’s what this phrase is all about. He said, maybe we ought to ask the question, why don’t you care? If you don’t care about the Lord and his things, then maybe you need to be asking the question from the opposite perspective, and that is, why don’t you care? And I want to talk first of all this morning about what prevents being pierced to the heart. Why is it that people don’t get to that point? Why is it that the preaching of the gospel falls on deaf ears, we might say, or people who hear this message just don’t see its relevance or don’t care about the relevance of this message to their life.

I’m here to tell you, this message is relevant to your life. If there is sin on your account by God’s reckoning, there is nothing more relevant than this message.

And yet people by the thousands may hear this message. It doesn’t produce anything at all. It doesn’t produce this. I just want to get people there. If there’s someone who is not in a right relationship with God this morning in this audience, my goal is to get you right there. Pierced to the heart. Why can’t we get people there? Well, there’s one very simple explanation, which Chris was exploring in his question, why should I care and why people don’t care? And so, since we were going in the same direction, I thought I would bring that up. The problem is a heart that’s going in the wrong direction. That’s why people don’t get here. Because they are enthralled with all the wrong things. Because we were talking in our Bible class this morning.

They are enthralled with what they see. They are enthralled with themselves. They are enthralled with the world. They are absolutely mesmerized by the stuff of this world. And so spiritual things that pertain to our invisible souls and an invisible God, they’re just not into that. Bottom line. It doesn’t move them. They’re not pierced to the heart because they do not care. Their heart is misguided. This is why we can’t get people to the point of conviction like we’ve seen in generations past. You think 21st century culture is the same as the 1950s or 60s? It’s not.

We live in a time when people are absolutely enthralled with this. And this heart condition will affect enthusiasm for worship. It affects the way that we listen to the word when it is taught. So I thought we need to explore this a little bit and ask an important question. You know, everybody gets excited about something. Everybody is passionate about something. And it’s not the same from person to person. I mean, I’m pretty passionate about March Madness because my team is still alive, barely. Hanging on by their fingernails last night. A little passionate about that. As I watch that. What are you passionate about?

Admittedly, it’s a challenge to be passionate about what you cannot see when we are so mesmerized by the appeal of what we can see. That’s what’s challenging about worship and deriving benefit from it. My confidence in the spiritual realm that I’m making these appeals here today to a very real God and Savior. And unless you see that, unless you focus on that, as long as you are enthralled with things of this world and what is seen, you’ll not get to this. And that’s why we’re admonished in 1 John 2 and the little aside that’s going on there in that part of the context when he says, look, don’t love the world. He who does the will of God abides forever. The world doesn’t last. And all that’s in it, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, the pride, none of that lasts.

That doesn’t last. The one who focuses on the unseen, the one who does the will of God, that person abides forever. And the whole context that we were looking at in regard to godliness with contentment is great gain. As you go on further in that context, when he talks about the love of money being a root of all sorts of evil. And he talks about these things being a snare, harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. He says, flee these things. And he goes on to talk about store up for yourselves a foundation for the future. Invest in spiritual things, engage in good works and share. He says, that’s the kind of heart that we need to have. What we invest in our souls, what we’re doing here today, what we invest in our souls far exceeds and transcends everything else.

Everything else, that’s a big category. But what you invest in your soul exceeds all of that by miles.

2. An Informed Heart Overwhelmed by God's Mercy

So you need to perceive the value of it, the permanence of it, and the reward of it. And if we get tired in the process, what better way to get fatigued? That’s point number one. Now let’s get to this. Pierce to the heart, number two. An informed heart. That’s what the people had on the day of Pentecost. An informed heart is one that is overwhelmed by God’s great mercy. That’s how you get to the point that you are pierced to the heart. Let me tell you the first thing that happens in the hearts of those people on the day of Pentecost when he said, This Jesus whom you crucified, God hath made him both Lord and Christ. They realize the gravity of their guilt. Guilt’s a bad word in our culture.

Oh, it’s terrible for self-esteem to experience guilt. But I want to tell you, unless there is guilt over your misdeeds, you won’t get here. And the great gravity of our guilt.

The trial occurred nearly 15 years ago. It was highly publicized. The queens of armed robbery. They called themselves four teenage girls from the Kingwood area were convicted of robbing stores at gunpoint, convenience stores during their summer break. One of them was a member of the drill team, another was a star athlete. One article reporting the story was entitled Nice Girls with Guns. And the reason why I remember this so well is because the judge on that case is a Christian. Mark Ken Ellis. Judge Ellis attends with the Southside congregation in Pasadena, Texas, and I know Mark, and he’s he’s a great guy. And he was the judge on this case, and he’s quoted two very famous quotes from that trial that went nationwide. At sentencing, Judge Ellis noted, this case was and always will be about the victims of this case.

I like that.

He told the two girls who would be sentenced to prison for a few years.

Before the jury about one of the teens. We can’t forget that she wasn’t sobbing when she stuck a gun in people’s faces, threatened their lives, and took their property. I can imagine these girls were crying in the courtroom. They weren’t sobbing then. And news agencies reported Judge Ellis’ final comments. Spare me your tears. You have sown to the wind, and you have reaped the whirlwind. See the bailiff. I like that ending. That was what was next. See the bailiff. Listen. The adrenaline rush and the excitement was all gone when the trial was taking place. The reality of the crime and the punishment for it was sinking in. Tears, regret, prison. Now, where am I going with all of that? Hope those girls are leading reformed lives now, all four of them.

I don’t know. Can you imagine? I can’t imagine being in trouble with the court. That’s never happened to me, thankfully. I can’t imagine standing before a judge or a jury to hear a verdict about what I’ve done. And even more to hear them say guilty. Listen, while I can’t imagine that’s where you are. And that’s where I am. Before God’s throne. So imagine it. And it’s a far greater court. It’s the court of spiritual crimes. And I stand before that court and before the judge, and the pronouncement is guilty.

Eternal banishment from the throne of God and his goodness. Eternal torment. An unceasing anguish to follow. That’s what I’ve earned. I want to tell you.

So many dismiss that. I’m standing before the court and I’m guilty. And yet God is extending his mercy. That’s what’s going on in Acts chapter two. The scriptures speak clearly. The fact that we have any hope at all is due to the mercy of God. We deserve the sentence that I spoke of. And yet God says, You’re going free. No jail time. You’re out.

And even more, maybe the sentence is more like lethal injection. Being put to death for the crimes that we’ve committed. But instead, God says, I am setting you free. Though you have sown to the wind, you don’t have to reap the whirlwind. And that’s why salvation, God, rich in mercy, Ephesians chapter 2. He saved us not on the basis of deeds that we had done in righteousness. We’re guilty. But because of his mercy, he says, through the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit. Yes, there’s a responsibility. There’s something we have to do, like those people on the day of Pentecost. Repent and be baptized for the remission of your sins. That’s another way of saying. Renewing by the Holy Spirit and the washing of regeneration.

Interestingly enough. But it is because of his mercy. Don’t ever forget that.

Once pierced by the sting of our guilt. God says, I’m going to let you off the hook. That’s what the sacrifice of his son is all about. An awful sacrifice at that.

And that should be enough. I mean, okay, Lord, whatever you want me to do. Again, no quibbling about the cost that he’s going to ask of us, whatever that means. No big deal, because here is where I was, and here’s what you’re offering. But that’s not all.

He’s going to employ me in his service, a vessel for honor. Here’s where I was, and yet here’s what he wants to do with me. Jesus, who knew no sin became sin on our behalf. I love that. 2 Corinthians 5 21. What a verse. He who knew no sin, he did nothing wrong, didn’t deserve this. He who knew no sin became sin on our behalf. He bore the curse of sin for us. But that’s not the end of the verse. That we might become, and I have to circle that word become. That we might become something. The righteousness of God in him. We’ve been declared right or just, and now we’re pursuing, we get to pursue that which elevates our lives and brings it to a higher plane.

We have the prospect of purpose, a real and lasting legacy to boot. That’s to boot people. We who are deserving of death, guilty before the court, not just receiving the mercy of God, but given the prospect of purpose. Oh, but that’s not all. Beyond that, if that’s not enough.

The hope of heaven? Are you kidding? Immortality? Something that defies description, happiness and bliss beyond our imagination in the presence of this holy and perfect God. Are you kidding me? Yes. The informed. Heart. So let me just recommend something. Perhaps we need to think regularly about the facts of our condition. So that our heart stays tender and humble and dedicated to our God. Perhaps we need to spend more time, and that’s the purpose of this sermon, not just to convict somebody who’s without, but to keep us convicted about the things unto which we’ve come. As the people of God, we are those upon whom the ends of the ages have come. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10 of verse 11.

You realize what a privileged state we have come to.

3. An Informed Heart Leads to an Obedient Heart

And that leads, that informed heart leads to an obedient heart. Committed to godliness and goodness. That’s the natural response. Again, there was no evidence that they were quibbling about the cost involved. These two words, they were just elated and thankful. That not only were they not getting what they deserve, but they are getting something undeserved. Whatever you want me to do, Lord. No request is too great. Save yourselves from this perverse generation was the appeal. And they gladly received his word. So what is our conversion to the Lord all about? Think about this. As we get to the end of this morning. Conversion to the Lord is from bankruptcy to prosperity. Now that’s a wow. Spiritual bankruptcy to prosperity.

Did you hear the story about Joseph Amory this week? Bet you didn’t. Looking like you have a blank look on your face. Joseph Amory’s. Had hernia. Had to have surgery in New York. He’s a Pennsylvania fellow, but he’s. He has surgery. And gets a get well card from his father after his hernia surgery, opens it up, and there’s a lottery ticket inside.

That’s how some people do get well, I guess. Don’t do that for me. I would have an awful story to explain. He scratches off the ticket. It was a scratch off ticket. Seven million dollars. Calls his wife. They’ve been married ten months. Boy, did she hit the jackpot? She thought. Honey. My dad sent me a lottery ticket in the get well card. We just won seven million. No, he didn’t. Taxes. He only walked away with 4.6.

Well, okay, his financial fortunes were reversed by a single lottery ticket. Don’t play the lottery. That’s not the point of this story. It’s fool’s math. Don’t forget it. You will not be Joseph Amory’s, most probably. And if you are, well, that’s another story. Life changing, yes. But temporary. Still. And if we could only assess where we are spiritually, when we come into favor with God and fellowship with him and salvation and the hope of immortality. We’ve got Joseph Amory’s beaten by a country mile. And further. But these things have to be spiritually understood and appraised. That’s how we get here. God knows the true value of things, and we are faring as God’s people far better than that, but we will not perceive it if we are misguided and misinformed.

Conclusion

Nothing is more right, more logical, and more rewarding than surrendering your life to him who became a curse for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Guilty. But we have received the mercy of God. Have you? Will you say all to Jesus? I surrender. I surrender all. Let’s stand and sing.