Acts 3:13-19
‘(You) killed the Prince of life, Whom God has raised from the dead!… God before showed by the mouth of all His Prophets, that Christ should suffer. He has so fulfilled!… Repent therefore, and be converted — so that your sins may be blotted out when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord!… He shall send Jesus Christ Who was before preached to you, Whom Heaven must receive — until the times of restitution!’ Acts 3:15-21.
Calvin comments that the Jewish people had “delivered to death One Whom Pilate desired to set free…. They (had) spared a murderer, and put to death the Prince of life…. They rejected the Just and Holy One…. They made war against God….
“(But) God raised Him up!… God nonetheless restored Him to life!… Christ would redeem you, by His death!… The Jews did all they could to extinguish all hope of life through the Person of Christ…. Yet that death gave life…to the whole world….
“‘Repent!’… When the time of refreshing shall come, you too may enjoy this refreshing!… Our sins are forgiven, with the Day of Final Judgment in view…. The faithful have a twofold stimulus to encourage them, when they hear tell of the Last Judgment…. Our hearts would often be dismayed, if we did not recall that the Day of Rest will come…. The other stimulus…is that the fearful judgment of God shakes us out of our pleasures and sloth…. Peter combines threats and promises….
“The Day of the Lord (is) at one time…dreadful and fearful, and at another time…pleasant and desirable. Peter therefore, in putting the Jews in hope of pardon, rightly presents the Day of Christ to them — as a day of joy, so that they may desire it!….
“He expressly names Christ as the Judge…. Contempt of the Gospel will not go unpunished…. Christ must be the One to punish that…. Christ is preached to you now, before He comes to judge the world, so that those who now embrace Him may in that Day receive the fruit of their faith — while others who refuse Him, may receive the punishment for their unbelief…. Chris is not offered to them in vain. Because He shall be sent by the Father a second time, to be a Judge armed to execute vengeance — unless they receive Him now, as their Redeemer!…
“That restoration (or “restitution”), is still in process of completion…. Perfection…is deferred until the Last Day…. Let us lift up our hearts and be revived by the hope that Christ shall one day come, and restore all things!… The warfare of the Church, is not yet complete!”
Calvin also says in his Institutes III:3:20: “We must aim at repentance; cultivate it during our whole lives; and continue it to the last! Christ came to call sinners…to repentance…. ‘Repent therefore…, so that your sins may be blotted out!’… Acts…3:19.”
For Christ brings us — times of refreshing! Shall you too then be refreshed?
