“But when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you will receive power to testify about me with great effect, to the people in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth, about my death and resurrection” (Acts 1:8 LB).
The apostles had asked Jesus, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” This seemed like a simple question from innocent minds, until one considers it against the backdrop of the earlier instruction to them from the Lord which was that they should wait in Jerusalem for the promise of the Father. They were probing to know what was coming up next in the program of God and seemed not bothered about receiving the promise of the Father that would empower them to become effective witnesses for Christ. The Lord’s chagrin was evident in His retort, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority” (Acts 1:7). Our Lord implied by that statement that what they were asking about was none of their business, but God’s. Rather, they should focus on what truly should concern them at the moment, namely, receiving the promise of the Father. He had earlier reminded them of the imperative necessity of waiting in “Jerusalem until they were endued with power from on high” (Luke 24:49). He expected them to focus on that and wait for further instruction when necessary. Before we judge them too harshly, we seem to be caught in a similar web as theirs today.
The Holy Spirit’s power enables believers to testify about Jesus ‘with great effect.
Our Lord’s demand on us today states, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14 NKJV). Meeting this sacred demand should be the singular preoccupation of the church now and not forecasting on the possible time the rapture will occur. Our Lord made it clear that the details of His second coming are known only to the Father –“However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows. And since you don’t know when that time will come, be on guard! Stay alert!” (Mark 13:32-33 NLT). The best way to stay alert is to stay faithful with preaching the gospel of the kingdom “in all the world as a witness to all the nations.” To ensure that we preach with heavenly effect, the Father sent the Holy Spirit to become our resident resource for supernatural power for ministry. “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you,” our Lord had promised. The promised “power” describes the enablement the Holy Spirit provides for believers to preach the gospel of the kingdom with great effect. Without this power, preaching will amount to no more than mere pulpit oratory. What would this “great effect” bring about?
First, it will occasion strong conviction of sin in unbelievers who hear the gospel preached. Our Lord said of the Holy Spirit, “And when He comes, He will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment” (John 16:8 NLT). Seeing sinners under the conviction of the Holy Spirit is a rare occurrence nowadays. This testifies clearly to the absence of the power of God in the preaching of so many, as it was of the apostolic preaching –“Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” (Acts 2:27 LB). There was nothing threatening in the message Peter preached on the day of the Pentecost, yet his words pierced the heart of his hearers. He preached with the power of the Holy Spirit. “For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance…” (1 Thess 1:5). We need to preach with similar power and assurance to get the ears of the people of our days. Secondly, the power will unleash converting effect on those who hear the gospel –“For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord” (Acts 11:24 NKJV).
Barnabas preached with the power of the Holy Spirit and it produced so powerful a converting effect that multitudes pressed into the kingdom of God. Thirdly, the power manifests in a convincing and irresistible wisdom as evidenced in Stephen –“None of them could stand against the wisdom and the Spirit with which Stephen spoke” (Acts 6:10 NLT). This is not the wisdom of this world, but a direct impartation of the Spirit of God. Paul said, “And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 2:4 NLT). We must pray for such reliance on the power of the Holy Spirit as we preach today.
The feast of the Pentecost is here again. God is ready to pour out His Spirit on us once more. Let us seek His face with undivided attention for a fresh enduement with power from on high in Jesus name. Happy Pentecost Sunday
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