What Peter had said was that he and those with him were in the present and manifest experience of that which Joel the prophet had spoken, God the Father had promised, and Jesus the Lord Christ had shed forth. The Holy Ghost had come as they could see and hear. Those who responded with 'men and brethren, what shall we do?' plainly expected an experience comparable with that which they witnessed, didn't they? The man speaking to them was claiming to be indwelt by the Holy Ghost who had inspired the utterance they had heard, and he was obviously under some great power other than his own.
They firmly believed their scriptures to be inspired of God, and here was a man interpreting them to their hearts as no-one else had ever done. He said that Joel's prophetic promises were being fulfilled in himself and his companions; but these were all millennial, weren't they? Or so they had been taught. But this Jesus whom they had crucified was the Messiah, they heard Peter say, and He had been raised up from the dead to receive the promise of the Father and shed forth this, and this was that of which Joel had spoken. This being so, they wanted it. So when the apostle said that they would receive the promise of Jesus' Father who had faithfully kept His word to Jesus that He would raise Him from the dead, they believed in that kind of God; consequently they expected to receive all they saw and heard. If what they witnessed was the result of receiving the promise, and that same promise was unto them, then nothing short of an identical experience could possibly satisfy them.
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G.W. North (1913 - 2003)
G. W. North was born in London England in 1913. As a young man he became aware that the Lord was calling him into the work of the ministry. At timely stages the Lord placed folk in his path who were able to direct him into the truth of heart purity and a more expansive understanding of the ministry of the Holy Spirit. He held pastorates in Kent and Bradford. By the late 1960s, following a significant period of ministry in Liverpool, he began a more itinerant ministry. This led him to many parts of the world, and occupied him until well into his eighties. His powerful preaching and the unique sense of the Lord's presence, which seemed to brood over his meetings, were always intensely challenging.The true secret of his remarkable ministry stemmed from his personal communion with the Lord Jesus. To him, 'entering the holiest' was not merely a theological concept; it was a distinct spiritual reality - and the central feature of his spiritual life. It was here, in the place of worship, that his revelatory ministry found its source. He preached from understanding and conviction. He was never the echo of another, nor did he take on board the ebb and flow of various contemporary emphases. He was not a man of 'books'; he soaked himself in Scripture and allowed it to saturate his heart and mind. Truly, this is a man who has lifted up a standard for the people. Mr North went to be with the Lord on 29th April 2003, shortly after his ninetieth birthday.