A Study of Acts: Signs and Wonders
Acts 2:19-21 - Call on the Name of the Lord now to ensure your salvation.
“And I will grant wonders in the sky above And signs on the earth below, Blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke. The sun will be turned into darkness And the moon into blood, Before the great and glorious day of the Lord shall come. And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’”
Acts 2:19-21 NASB1995
Peter continues to quote from the second chapter of Joel. In the last days before the great and glorious day of the Lord, there will be wonders in the sky above and signs on the Earth below. These signs include blood, fire and vapor of smoke. The sun will be turned into darkness and the moon into blood.
Are these signs metaphorical or real? Earlier this year we witnessed our third total solar eclipse, viewing this wonder (with a few clouds intervening) in the hill country of Texas. Our group that was full of professional and amateur astronomers knew exactly what time (down to the millisecond) when the moon would first begin its transit across the sun; we had timers running for the exact minutes and seconds of totality at our latitude and longitude, and the end of the eclipse was predictable. We have also seen many lunar eclipses over the years, where the moon can often look blood red during totality from the light reflected from Earth.
Some friends and Christian groups that I follow posted on social media that this particular eclipse was likely one of the “signs” discussed in Joel, by Peter in Acts and in Revelation (why this one was a sign and not all of the other ones that have taken place at various points on the Earth on a predictable schedule was apparently not considered). Back in my secular humanist days, I would have been pounding the keyboard shouting at them about this natural phenomenon and questioning their intelligence. Solar eclipses have been going on for a long time (we won’t get into a discussion of how long), given the perfect configuration and size of the moon that orbits Earth.
In fact, astronomers have precisely calculated the periodicity of eclipses (see this Link) and people can plan their travel around the next eclipse, knowing exactly when and where totality will occur and for how long. We humans, endowed with reason and intelligence by our creator, now understand the orbital mechanics of bodies in our solar system and why these eclipses occur. Through great telescopes on Earth and in space, we have also uncovered wonders beyond description in this Universe, gazing deep into the billions of light years and trillions of galaxies (at last count). The celestial signs described in Scripture are obviously something way beyond what is currently observed; I believe they will be unmistakable and not normal or predictable. God can unmake what He has made, in an instant.
So the other signs on Earth of blood and fire and smoke are also probable signs of trials and tribulations before the Day of the Lord. As I noted in a previous devotional, trying to predict exactly when this day will occur is trying to outguess God on His plan, which even the Son does not know. We can be ready, every day, for that event, but we may all go to our graves, like over 2,000 years of believers, with things still intact.
People have always been warlike, violent, perverse, and against God, so the current cultural insanities are nothing new. Christians will always be hated, as Jesus warned. Citing a brand new Apostasy that happened on July 27 at the opening ceremonies for the Paris Olympics, Christians and Jesus were mocked with a depraved drag queen parody of the Last Supper (what this has to do with athletic events is beyond my comprehension). Is it a sign of the end times? Perhaps, but history repeats itself many times; remember, this is the same country that sent priests and nuns to the guillotines during the French Revolution.
My point on going down this bunny trail is that the key thing to think about in this passage is not necessarily worrying about the signs and wonders, but the fact that in the last verse, it is noted that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved in that glorious Day of the Lord. This is the good news! Peter is turning his sermon into evangelism, as we will see shortly. Although the Gentiles are not part of the equation yet, this statement is inclusive by using the term “everyone”. I love what Charles Spurgeon says about this, as quoted in Precept Austin:
Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved, for there will be an escape for those on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, as the Lord promised, among the survivors the Lord calls.” In the worst times that can ever happen, there is still salvation for people. When day turns to night and life becomes death, when the staff of life is broken and the hope of all has fled, there still remains in God, in the person of his dear Son, deliverance to all those who will call on the name of the Lord. We must call on the true God, not on an idol or an image or an impression of our minds. We must call on the living God—call on him who reveals himself in the Bible—call on him who reveals himself in the person of his dear Son. For whosoever will call on this God will be saved. This way of salvation—calling on the name of the Lord—glorifies God. He asks nothing of us but that we ask everything of him. We are the beggars and he is the benefactor. We are in trouble and he is our deliverer. All we have to do is trust him and beg of him. This is easy enough. This puts the matter into the hands of the Lord and takes it out of our hands.
Call on the name of the Lord today, for times are always uncertain! We can die at any time or He may come in Glory, so don’t delay your salvation.
My next devotional examines Acts 2:22-24 - Peter tells the crowd what they did to Jesus.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - We are saved by calling on Your Name. You will deliver us from evils and bring us to You in Your Glory! Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Precept Austin was accessed on 7/28/2024 to review commentary for Acts 2:19-21.