Peter’s Pentecost Christology

Matthew 16:15-17 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” ¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” ¹⁷ And Yahushua said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

Yahuwah revealed to Peter that Yahushua was the Christ, the Son of Yahuwah. Unfortunately, due to the influence of post-Biblical orthodoxy, many misinterpret his confession to mean that Yahushua is God the Son. If this were true, that Yahushua is indeed Yahuwah, we would expect Peter to repeat this revelation in his post-ascension sermons. Let’s look at the apostle’s most famous sermon to find out who Peter believed Yahushua to be.

Peter’s Pentecost Sermon

What did Peter preach on the Church’s inauguration day? Considering that the doctrines of Yahushua’s deity and that of the triune God are paramount to Trinitarian theology, we would reasonably expect them to be part of Peter’s Pentecost proclamation. What we find instead is that both doctrines are absent from this monumental theological occasion. Contrary to any notion that Yahushua is God, Peter presents Yahushua as a man whom Yahuwah exalted as Christ.

Peter begins his message by speaking plainly of Yahushua’s humanity, making no mention whatsoever of his supposed deity:

Acts 2:22-23 “Men of Israel, listen to these words: Yahushua the Nazarene, a man attested to you by Yahuwah with miracles and wonders and signs which Yahuwah performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know— ²³ this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of Yahuwah, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.

A Man From Nazareth Attested to By Miracles

Peter tells the multinational crowd that had gathered in Jerusalem for Pentecost¹ that Yahushua was a man from the town of Nazareth. He does not say that he literally came down from heaven or that he pre-existed in any way, but simply that this man hailed from a town about 65 miles away.

Moreover, Peter informs the people and us that Yahuwah performed miraculous signs and wonders through the Nazarene. In other words, Peter understood that when he and Yahushua walked on water, Yahuwah worked through His Messiah to perform this miraculous feat.

This starkly contrasts the Trinitarian claim that Yahushua’s miracles prove he is God. On the contrary, the purpose of the miracles was not to reveal that Yahushua was God but to demonstrate that Yahuwah was with Yahushua. The miracles were an attestation that he was the promised Messiah. Nicodemus, the Pharisee who met with Yahushua, said as much:

John 3:1-2 Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; ² this man came to Yahushua by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from Yahuwah as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless Yahuwah is with him.”

Nicodemus understood that the miracles proved that Yahuwah had ordained Yahushua. This is what Peter preached on Pentecost.

Yahushua Died

Peter reveals Yahushua’s humanity by remarking that the Nazarene was nailed to the cross and died. Only those who are mortal can die. Some will respond by saying that Yahushua only died in his human nature, while his God-nature did not die. However, this is a bold, presumptuous claim, considering the Bible never once says this or even alludes to it. Yahushua’s supposed dual natures (hypostatic union) doctrine was utterly foreign to the early Church. It developed over time and didn’t become the official doctrine of the Catholic church until the Council of Chalcedon in 451 AD.

On the other hand, Scripture testifies that Yahuwah alone possesses immortality,² meaning that it is impossible for Him to die. Furthermore, Scripture tells us that Yahuwah is not a man.³ Yet, Peter says that Yahushua is a man:⁴

Acts 2:22 “Men of Israel, listen to these words: Yahushua the Nazarene, a man attested to you by Yahuwah with miracles and wonders and signs which Yahuwah performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know—

Acts 2:24 “But Yahuwah raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.

Yahuwah provided the resurrection power. Yahushua was its recipient. Death could not possibly hold this man in its grasp because the power of Yahuwah is greater than death.

Some are heard to say that Yahushua raised himself from the dead, thus proving He is God. However, Scripture says almost thirty times that Yahuwah raised Yahushua from the dead. This is what Peter preached at Pentecost.

Yahushua is David’s Descendant

Peter further attests to Yahushua’s being resurrected by Yahuwah when he quotes King David’s prophecy and concludes that it is fulfilled in Yahushua:

Acts 2:29-32 “Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. ³⁰ “And so, because he was a prophet and knew that Yahuwah had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants on his throne, ³¹ he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was neither abandoned to hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay. ³² “This Yahushua Yahuwah raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.

Peter testifies that Yahushua is a man by calling him the descendant of King David. This descendant died, but Yahuwah raised him to immortality.⁶ Furthermore, according to King David’s prophecy, Yahuwah has placed this descendant on the throne. Contrary to orthodoxy, however, it is not Yahuwah’s throne that he now occupies, but the throne at Yahuwah’s right hand:

Acts 2:33-35 “Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of Yahuwah, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear. ³⁴ “For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, ³⁵ UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET.”‘

Purpose of Peter’s Sermon

What was the purpose of Peter’s sermon on this glorious day when Yahuwah poured out His Spirit on believers? What was it that the apostle wanted his hearers to know for certain?

Acts 2:36 “Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that Yahuwah has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Yahushua whom you crucified.”

Peter wanted the people to know that Yahuwah had exalted Yahushua, the man from Nazareth, to His right hand and made him both Lord and Christ. If Yahushua were truly God incarnate, as fourth-century Church Fathers would come to believe, he would not require exaltation, nor would he need to be designated Lord, as he would inherently be the exalted Lord. But Peter, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit,⁷ proclaimed that it was Yahuwah who exalted Yahushua to this status. In other words, it was all Yahuwah’s doing.

Peter concludes his sermon by calling for his hearers to repent of their sins and be baptized in the name of this man from Nazareth whom he calls the Christ (Messiah):

Acts 2:37-42 Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” ³⁸ Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Yahushua 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 your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.” ⁴⁰ And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!” ⁴¹ So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand souls.

Did Peter preach that Yahushua was God? On the contrary, this former fisherman from Galilee preached that Yahushua the Nazarene was, per prophecy, the descendant of King David and the promised Messiah. Furthermore, Yahuwah had attested to this truth by performing miracles through Yahushua. What’s more, even though he had been crucified, Yahuwah had raised Yahushua from the grave, thus bestowing immortality upon him. This Yahushua is now seated at Yahuwah’s right hand, having been exalted by Yahuwah to be Lord and Christ. Through this man’s name, Yahuwah now offers forgiveness of sins and salvation to those who repent and are baptized. This is what Peter believed and preached at Pentecost. Shouldn’t we start preaching the same message that Peter preached?

¹ Acts 2:5-11.

² Acts 17:31; 1 Timothy 6:16.

³ Numbers 23:19.

⁴ Paul also teaches that Yahushua is a man in 1 Timothy 2:5. Yahushua even says he is a man in John 8:40.

⁵ Acts 2:36.

⁶ Romans 6:9.

⁷ Acts 2:4.

This is a non-WLC article. Source: https://oneGodworship.com/peters-christology-at-the-beautiful-gate/

We have taken out from the original article all pagan names and titles of the Father and Son, and have replaced them with the original given names. Furthermore, we have restored in the Scriptures quoted the names of the Father and Son, as they were originally written by the inspired authors of the Bible. -WLC Team