Acts 2 finds all the believers gathered together in one place. Suddenly a noise comes from the sky, a great wind fills the house, and tongues of fire appear above the head of each person assembled. The promised gift has arrived. Everyone there is filled with the Holy Spirit. They can see and feel that something amazing is happening, but onlookers accuse them of being drunk. In today's verses, Peter stands up to speak into the excitement and confusion of the moment. He proclaims the core of our faith as Christ followers, saying that Jesus Christ crucified is, in fact, the risen Lord, the Messiah.

Peter highlights the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Jesus is a disrupter. To those who want to maintain the status quo, he is a troublemaker. He is a threat to people who are more interested in earthly power than in God’s kingdom; he is crucified accordingly, as a threat to the state. It is easy to think about those ancient rulers and their need for power that led them to crucify Jesus, but what about our own need to feel power that leads us to withhold parts of our lives from Jesus? Whatever we withhold from the Crucifixion we also withhold from the Resurrection.

To accept Jesus Christ as the Messiah is to welcome disruption in all parts of our lives, to let our own need for control be crucified so that we can make room for the gifts of the Holy Spirit and live as people who exhibit resurrection. To accept Jesus Christ is to grapple with God who is crucified, rises again, and sends the Holy Spirit to be with us.