"Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world" (1 John 4:1, NKJ).
When I was in high school, I belonged to a charismatic prayer group that met on Friday nights. As we prayed together, many people spoke in tongues (unknown languages) while others would prophesy--sharing messages that the Spirit had given while we were in prayer. To my untrained ear, they sounded Scriptural and I discovered later they even used phrases that came directly from the Bible! But we never opened the Bible during these meetings. We depended completely on impressions that we thought were heaven sent.
While I was involved in this prayer group, I witnessed people being 'slain in the Spirit'--falling down in ecstasy when praying hands were laid upon them. I heard people speak in strange languages that no one could understand. I heard of miracles happening right and left and it filled me with strong feelings for God. I felt lifted up above this earth, believing I was in His very presence.
But the Lord led me into a much deeper experience with Him. My boyfriend invited me to attend a new church with him on Saturday mornings where we could hear the Word of God. Both of us came from churches where there was little study in the Bible. And we were so refreshed by what we heard! It filled the hunger we had for Jesus and led us to read the Bible for ourselves.
But it was a hard road for me, mainly because I was used to a spiritual 'high' in seeking the Lord. My faith was grounded in feelings rather than a "thus says the Lord." When I was joyful, I felt God loved me. But if I was sad or things weren't going right at home, I felt God didn't care for me anymore. My perceptions of who He was and my relationship with Him were wrapped up in my emotions. You can imagine what a roller coaster ride that was! It took a couple of years before I felt my feet touch solid ground, where my faith rested on something more constant and reliable.
But this experience opened my eyes to the deadly warfare going on in the world today. Jesus wants to speak to us on a deeper, more intimate level. But how will He speak to me? How can I know I'm hearing His voice and not the voice of the devil? Impressions are not a safe guide! Our minds are not an impregnable fortress, even in prayer. Satan and his demons can come near even then, suggesting thoughts that are not from God. No, our faith must be grounded in Jesus and in His unchanging Word! He is the same "yesterday, today, and forever" (Hebrews 13:8).
And that's where I must turn if I want to understand how to know when God is speaking to me. In the book of Acts, we see the incredible work of the Holy Spirit as seen through Christ's infant church. At Pentecost, three thousand souls were saved through a single sermon. Miracles were wrought. Lives were changed. Persecutors like Saul of Tarsus became missionaries for Christ. But how did the Holy Spirit work so powerfully? Was it through impressions given?
A quick survey of the Spirit's acts shows how God communicates with us. Beginning at Pentecost, we see Peter preaching a sermon that cut to the heart. Thousands responded, saying, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" The Spirit convicted them of sin. But conviction came as the result of preaching. Peter's sermon was a Bible based invitation to accept Jesus into their hearts. When you examine what he said, you'll see far less of Peter's ideas and far more of the Bible (perfectly quoted by the power of the Spirit). This was a sermon of fulfilled prophecy, showing God's people that their promised Messiah had come. Through prophecy and preaching, three thousand souls were added to the church that day.
Preaching the Word is the dominant way the Spirit spoke in the book of Acts. In Acts 3, we find Peter preaching about Jesus in Solomon's portico, after healing the lame man that begged at the gate of the temple. His message was one of revival, inviting the people as he had done at Pentecost, to repent and turn to the Lord. "Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord and that He may send Jesus who was preached to you before" (Acts 3:19,20).
Later, we see Stephen, that mighty deacon, preaching before the Sanhedrin. He was on trial for his faith because his enemies couldn't win against his wisdom or connection with Jesus. Through chapter 7, we hear a stirring testimony of Bible history--how the Lord had repeatedly worked for His people. He recounted glorious stories of deliverance through Moses and all the patriarchs and prophets. And the words of God in the Old Testament permeated his witness so that men's hearts were brought to conviction. But they resisted that conviction and clung to their sins. So the focus of Stephen's sermon shifted and he rebuked them, saying, "You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in your heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, as your fathers did, so do you" (Acts 7:51).
How did the Sanhedrin resist the Holy Spirit? It was by refusing to submit to the Word of God being preached by a faithful messenger.
In Acts 8, we see Philip carrying the gospel to the Samaritans. The Bible says, "he preached to them." And what was the result? "Multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip" (vs. 6). The Spirit brought that city to Jesus through the Word of God. We see the same ministry through Paul, now a mighty champion for the Lord. When he was converted, he carried the gospel to the heathen world, but always through the ministry of preaching.
God used other ways in speaking to His church in the book of Acts. The Ethiopian Jew was brought to Jesus through a Bible Study at the side of the road. Philip explained the meaning of the Scriptures found in Isaiah 53. At the end of that study, the Ethiopian was baptized and carried the gospel back to his own country.
Sometimes, the Lord spoke through dreams, such as when He guided Peter to work for the Gentiles, calling no man "unclean" merely because he wasn't a Jew (Acts 10). He spoke through visions as when Paul met Jesus on the road to Damascus and heard Him say, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?" (Acts 9:4) One time, the Lord directed Peter to perceive that Ananias and Sapphira were stealing money from the Lord (Acts 4). But impressions were never used in interpreting what the Bible said. Men discovered truth by searching the Scriptures, comparing one verse with another, and relying on the context of the passage to know God's perfect will. Paul later affirmed the Bereans because they "received the Word with all readiness AND searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so" (Acts 17:11). They examined what God had revealed, they tested to see if it was true based upon the revelation of Scripture, not on their own imagination or feelings.
"The Scriptures need not be read by the dim light of tradition or human speculation. As well might we try to give light to the sun with a torch as to explain the Scriptures by human tradition or imagination. God’s holy Word needs not the torchlight glimmer of earth to make its glories distinguishable. It is light in itself—the glory of God revealed, and beside it every other light is dim.
But there must be earnest study and close investigation. Sharp, clear perceptions of truth will never be the reward of indolence. No earthy blessing can be obtained without earnest, patient, persevering effort. If men attain success in business, they must have a will to do and a faith to look for results. And we cannot expect to gain spiritual knowledge without earnest toil. Those who desire to find the treasures of truth must dig for them as the miner digs for the treasure hidden in the earth. No halfhearted, indifferent work will avail. It is essential for old and young, not only to read God’s word, but to study it with wholehearted earnestness, praying and searching for truth as for hidden treasure. Those who do this will be rewarded, for Christ will quicken the understanding" (Christ's Object Lessons, pg. 111).
As we seek to hear God's Voice, depend on what He says, not on what you feel. Let's be Bereans, opening our Bibles, and using a concordance, compare Scripture with Scripture. Do not add to what is not written through imaginative exercises that add details that aren't inspired. The Bible isn't fiction! It is truth and it must stand alone, without a subjective interpretation of what you think or feel might have happened.
The Spirit of Truth reveals truth when we stick to the context of what God says. This is the only way that the Bible can be an unerring guide. When we take the plain reading of the Word, it will act as a plumb line, in determining whether impressions are truly from the Lord. In these last days, when every wind of doctrine is clearly blowing and the foundations of Christianity are being shaken to the core, we need to heed the voice of God: "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they be of God, because many false prophets have gone into the world" (1 John 4:1). We cannot be safe unless we take the Bible, just as it reads, for a clear understanding of God's Truth. To test the spirits we must be rooted and grounded in this important text: "To the Law and to the Testimony; if they speak not according to this Word, it is because there is no light in them" (Isaiah 8:20).
To be one with Jesus, we must stand on the living Word of God, "knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation" (2 Peter 1:20). May God truly guide us in the right way and to rightly divide the Word of Truth!
"Peter and John answered and said to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. But we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard" (Acts 4:8).
The outpouring of the Holy Spirit radically changes men and women. Think of Peter, following Jesus after the soldiers arrested Him. As he stood around a fire to warm his hands, Peter trembled that he'd be found out for who he really was. What if the soldiers took him away too? All the bravado he felt in Gethsemane was wiped away. Fear gripped his heart and almost overwhelmed him. And that's what made denial so easy. Three times he was asked if he knew Jesus. And three times he disowned any relationship to Him.
But Pentecost changed all that. And Peter now stood before the Sanhedrin a very different man. The bluster and pride of the old life was gone. A humbler, more modest man stood before the court, a man who wasn't afraid to be called a disciple of Jesus. He was a man controlled by the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Sanhedrin sat in all their pomp and display, already congratulating themselves on their victory. "They remembered the part that Peter had acted at the trial of his Master, [and they] flattered themselves that he could now be intimidated by the threat of imprisonment and death" (Acts of the Apostles, pg. 62). But they had no idea of the power of the resurrection and how it had changed Peter. But they were soon to find out. Because Peter was determined "to remove the stain of his apostasy by honoring the name he had once disowned" (ibid). Christ stood beside his faithful witness and gave him power to speak clearly and boldly--to stand unflinchingly for the truth.
So in a ringing voice that filled the judgment hall, Peter declared,--"Rulers of the people and elders of Israel...let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. This is the 'stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.' Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:8-12.
There was no quaking in his boots now. No fear in his voice as he delivered this message. Not only did he stand tall for Jesus and testify that Christ had performed this miracle--in healing the lame man who also before the Sanhedrin. But Peter laid at their doorstep the death of Christ. Now, he might have said, 'This man was healed by Jesus Christ of Nazareth, who was crucified and rose from the dead.' That would have been true! But instead, Peter adds, 'whom you crucified.' Truth must be brought close to the heart. Before these men could ever be brought to repentance, they needed to see their guilt. They needed to admit their part in crucifying the Lord of Glory. And it's the same with us. Before we can be filled with the Spirit, we must come to grips with our true condition--that our own sins crucified Jesus Christ. That we're responsible for nailing Him to the cross. We have compromised with evil!
But there was no compromising for Peter. When it came time for the Sanhedrin to deliver the sentence, the Bible says, "they conferred among themselves, saying, 'What shall we do to these men? For, indeed, that a notable miracle has been done through them is evident to all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. But so that it spreads no further among the people, let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name" (Acts 4:15-17).
But Peter wouldn't be silenced by their threats, nor would he compromise on any point. For he was Christ's disciple. And he'd been commissioned by a higher authority to speak for Jesus and act in His name. So Peter answered, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." Acts 4:19,20. And he went out, in the power of the Spirit, to preach the gospel and make disciples of all nations. Because Peter had joined the revolution. And he went out, to speak boldly in Christ's name and to make no compromise with evil.
This revolution, begun at Pentecost, continued to grow in strength. The Holy Spirit worked through every disciple and the world was turned upside down for Christ--in a single generation. And though the revolution has had its ups and downs, and was almost extinguished during the Dark Ages, it re-emerged through the Reformation, as the power of the gospel was rediscovered.
Others like Peter took their place before church councils, to stand fearlessly for the truth. In my mind's eye, I see one of the greatest reformers of all, standing before the Diet at Worms. The power of Rome, with its ruthless Inquisition, threatened the work of the Reformation. As Luther looked into the faces before him, I'm sure he remembered what had happened to Huss and Jerome. They too had preached the gospel in its purity. Perhaps he even envisioned the flames that took their lives.
But the Holy Spirit had gotten a hold of Luther and, when asked to recant, (to take back the words he'd written against the Pope and Councils, against tyranny and error), he took his stand for truth. And in a ringing voice that filled the hall, he said, "Unless...I am convinced by the testimony of Scripture or by the clearest reasoning, unless I am persuaded by means of the passages I have quoted, and unless they thus render my conscience bound by the word of God, I cannot and I will not retract, for it is unsafe for a Christian to speak against his conscience. Here I stand. I can do no other; may God help me. Amen.”
When God calls us to follow Him in the Living Way, we join the ranks of the revolution. We take our stand, just as Peter and Luther did, saying, "Here I stand. I can do no other." Our lives are captive to the Word of God and His perfect will. There's no room for any divergence from the Truth. It's impossible to allow any drop of error into our faith, our message, or our witness. For truth is only truth when that is all it contains. If I put only a drop of strychnine into a cup of water, it would still be poison. I couldn't separate the good from the bad anymore. That one drop had changed the whole thing. It had turned a healthy drink into a poison. The same thing is true for God's truth and for His gospel. Even the tiniest compromise with error or worldly values destroys what it is. It distorts God's saving message, perverts His character and even shuts off the power that can save our souls.
Very few of us turn away from Christ overnight. We usually slide down the slippery slope one inch at a time. That's why we can't see how far we've fallen until the damage is done. The little compromises here and there have eaten away at our connection with Christ until we walk with Him no more. It happens by condoning sin in little doses. We might think it's okay to watch a program because most of it is true. Or it's all right to mix worldly entertainment with Bible stories because we're using it for evangelism. At least, that's how we think. But truth can't be mixed with error and still remain truth. For the Bible says, "What harmony is there between Christ and Belial?" (2 Corinthians 6:15) God can't co-exist in the same arena with anything less than total righteousness, whether that righteousness is heard in His message or in the way that it's carried out.
Yes, it's a straight path. And some might call it extreme. But the Living Way is the narrow way and it's the only path that leads to life eternal. "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way that leads to LIFE, and there are few who find it" (Matthew 7:13,14). But Jesus has walked this path before us and He's the One leading the way. We need to walk as He walked to be part of His revolution and turn the world upside down through the power of the gospel.
"For he whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure" (John 3:34).
I've always been intrigued by John the Baptist. His words are few in the gospels, but they've always been like magnets, drawing me to sit down and really listen. John's journey is what I want my journey to be. For he lived so close to God that he could say, "He must increase but I must decrease" (John 3:30).
You can't see the full wattage of this light unless you understand what John's life was really like. He was a man with a mission. From the day he was born, God called him to be a "prophet of the Highest" "to go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways" (Luke 1:76).
When his ministry began, Israel was on the brink of revolt. Herod Archelaus had just been removed from office and Judea was now under the full control of Rome. Heavy taxes, harsh treatment, and the determined efforts by the Roman governors to wipe out Jewish culture eventually kindled a revolt. Thousands of Jews lost their lives, but the iron monarchy of Rome remained strong. "All this intensified the national hatred against Rome, and increased the longing to be freed from her power" (Desire of Ages, pg. 104).
Then from the wilderness, the people heard a startling message, "Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand!" (Matthew 3:2) Dressed like the prophet Elijah, in camel's hair and a leather belt, John called the people to the desert by his plain, simple message. His words were straight and convicting--and so convincing that multitudes flocked to the Jordan to hear this strange, new teacher. Rulers, rabbis, soldiers, fishermen--they all came to hear John. And many returned to the Lord. Many repented of their sins and were baptized.
"For a time the Baptist's influence over the nation had been greater than that of its rulers, priests, or princes. If he had announced himself as the Messiah, and raised a revolt against Rome, priests and people would have flocked to his standard" (ibid, pg. 178). That kind of success could easily go to your head. But John didn't buy into it. He didn't seek the world's applause or its power. He was here to point to Jesus, "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29)
And then, John's apparent success hit the skids. Every day he saw less people coming out to the Jordan or another river where he was baptizing. He saw the people turning from Him to follow Jesus and soaking in His words. But John the Baptist only smiled from the sidelines. Some of his loyal disciples were clearly upset, but not John. He said, "He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled" (John 3:29). John was not the Light of the world, "but was sent to bear witness of that Light" (John 1:8). Now that the Light was shining and Christ was on the scene, John could accept silence and obscurity once again. All that mattered was Jesus and that all could turn to Him!
I can see now why Jesus said John the Baptist was the greatest of all the prophets (see Matthew 11:11). He was so filled with the Spirit that there was no room for self. Or maybe it was the other way around. And perhaps that's why John himself said, "Of His fullness we have all received and grace for grace" (John 1:16). God could pour Himself without measure into this messenger because John was so empty. He was ready to be filled. And God had so much room to work with!
I know it's the same for us. When we become emptied of self, we'll have more room for the Holy Spirit. But how can you be emptied of self? How can you go through the day, thinking "not I but Christ"? And then acting out that prayer so only Jesus can be seen? It's really impossible for us to do that on our own. We can only consent for God to do it for us. Then our prayer will be, "Lord, take my heart, for I cannot give it. It is Thy property. Keep it pure, for I cannot keep it for Thee. Save me in spite of myself, my weak, unChristlike self. Mold me, fashion me, raise me into a pure and holy atmosphere, where the rich current of Thy love can flow through my soul" (Christ's Object Lessons, pg. 159).
Not just in the morning, but all through the day, I need to say this prayer. When I began this new journey with Jesus, I longed to 'seek the Lord with all my heart' (Jeremiah 29:13). And I asked the Lord to show me what that meant. And this is one of the most important answers He gave me. To seek Him with everything I've got means I must continually seek for a John-the-Baptist experience--a continual, heart-breaking confession of sin and humbling my soul before Him. Only by saying "not my will, but Yours be done," or "not I, but Christ" and depending completely on Him will self die out. And when I spend more time with Jesus, these prayers will be like a fire burning in my heart. And the sweet Spirit will find that I am an empty cup that He can fill to overflowing.
"The Christian's life is not a modification or improvement of the old life, but a transformation of the nature. There is a death to sin and self, and a new life altogether. This change can be brought about only by the effectual working of the Holy Spirit" (Ye Shall Receive Power, pg. 323).
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"Then God said, 'Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness...So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him, male and female, He created them" (Genesis 1:26,27).
"When Adam came from the Creator's hand, he bore, in his physical, mental, and spiritual nature, a likeness to his Maker. "God created man in His own image" (Genesis 1:27), and it was His purpose that the longer man lived the more fully he should reveal this image--the more fully reflect the glory of the Creator. All his faculties were capable of development; their capacity and vigor were continually to increase.
Vast was the scope offered for their exercise, glorious the field opened to their research. The mysteries of the visible universe--the "wondrous works of Him which is perfect in knowledge" (Job 37:16)--invited man's study. Face to face, heart-to-heart communion with his Maker was his high privilege. Had he remained loyal to God, all this would have been his forever. Throughout eternal ages, he would have continued to gain new treasures of knowledge, to discover fresh springs of happiness, and to obtain clearer and yet clearer conceptions of the wisdom, the power, and the love of God. More and more fully would he have fulfilled the object of his creation, more and more fully have reflected the Creator's glory" (Education, pg. 15).
To know God--as He really is--is what Jesus had in mind in creating us. God created man in His image to resemble Him and be His children. And though sin has disrupted this perfect plan, Christ is the great Restorer. "Old things are passed away; behold, all things have become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17). By taking our place on Calvary's cross, He's made it possible for the image of God to be restored in us. For communion to be renewed. The communion that Adam and Eve once enjoyed can be our experience. The highest fulfillment will come, of course, once we get to heaven, but even now we can walk and talk with the Savior. And our capacity for knowing Him will continually increase.
From time to time, we come to Jesus with our little "cups." We ask Him to fill us up with His love or peace. But He has so much more to give us! When He sees our little containers, I think He says, "Is that all you want? I have much more to give. Don't you want a bigger container?" He longs to fill us to the full so that our cup runs over.
It reminds me of the woman who came in tears to Elisha. Her husband had been one of the students in the school of the prophets. But now he was dead and the creditors were banging at her door. Unless she could pay them all in full, they would take her sons away (to be their servants or their slaves). All that she had was one jar of oil. So Elisha told her, "Go, borrow vessels from everywhere, from all your neighbors--empty vessels; do not gather just a few" (2 Kings 4:3). Then she poured the oil from her vessel into all the borrowed ones. When a container was full, she asked her sons to bring her another one. And she continued pouring until all the vessels were full. "The supply ceased only when no more vessels were brought to receive it" (Reflecting Christ, pg. 269).
The same thing will happen today. The Lord will supply the oil in abundance, the presence of His Spirit, as long as we come, ready to be full. How many vessels do we bring to Jesus? If we bring only a few, we'll receive only a little. Barely a thimble full. And if our containers are small, we'll never know that "in Your presence is fullness of joy" (Psalm 16:11) and "to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God" (Ephesians 3:19, New Revised Standard).
But if we come with many vessels, Christ will fill us to full capacity. But the question is: how much do we want? How much do we expect Christ to give us? Do we believe we can receive the fullness of God or do we expect only a meager helping? Here's what Jesus offers you--"Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above ALL that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us" (Ephesians 3:20).
What power is working in you? It's not your strength, is it? It's the power of the Holy Spirit! He comes to you with the same power that filled Christ as He spoke to the storm, saying "Peace, be still" (Mark 4:39). The same power that called this world into existence. Or consider this: Christ comes to give you "the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 1:19,20). This same resurrection power is at work in you through the presence of God's Spirit!
He comes to you every day, asking to enter your house, your thoughts, and your heart. If you let Him in, He'll give you the mind of Christ. What God loves, you will love. What He hates, you will hate. It's too amazing even to grasp! Not only will He give you His heart but His mind as well! (1 Corinthians 2:16) And the more you sit at His feet, soaking in His Word, listening to His Spirit, the bigger your heart will grow. Your cups will become pitchers, barrels, and vessels continually growing and expanding. The more room you give to Jesus, the more your capacity to love Him will grow. "Growing into His likeness, we enlarge our capacity for knowing God. More and more we enter into fellowship with the heavenly world, and we have continually increasing power to receive the riches of the knowledge and wisdom of eternity" (Christ's Object Lessons, pg. 355, italics supplied).
My Prayer
Dear Father in heaven, thank you for the abundance that You have promised to pour into my life. Help me believe that Your fullness can be mine. Enlarge my vessels so that I can receive more of You each day--so that my capacity will hold all the blessings You want to give me. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.
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"Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus" (Acts 4:13).
Under the training pf Christ the disciples had been led to feel their need of the Spirit. Under the Spirit's teaching, they received the final qualification, and went forth to their life work. No longer were they ignorant and uncultured. No longer were they a collection of independent units of discordant, conflicting elements. No longer were their hopes set on worldly greatness. They were of "one accord," "of one heart and of one soul" (Acts 2:46, 4:32). Christ filled their thoughts; the advancement of His kingdom was their aim. In mind and character they had become their Master, and men "took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus" (Reflecting Christ, pg. 42).
You would think that after spending 3 and a half years with Jesus, the training of the disciples would have been complete. But even after all that time--even after having lived with Christ for those 3 years--they weren't ready to finish God's work.They didn't understand Christ's mission or what His kingdom was all about.
They should have known. Christ had told them in many ways. "Blessed are the poor in Spirit," He said, "for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 5:3). "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18:3). Jesus said "the kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:21). But the disciples continued to look forward to an earthly kingdom. They dreamed of national greatness, when the glory of Israel would be restored. They wanted freedom from the Romans, not freedom from sin.
And yet, they came to Jesus--to be with Him and to join in His work. They brought their "cups" for Him to fill, without realizing how much they were holding back. Now before you shake your head, thinking "How could they be so slow?" think of your own track record. We choose to follow Jesus. But we often give Him only a piece of our heart, thinking all the while that we've made a full surrender. We don't know how to trust Him with everything. We're afraid of what it might mean or what He might ask us to do.
Like those early disciples, we need the Spirit's anointing to see what we need most. We need the constant presence of Jesus in our lives. And only the Holy Spirit can make that happen. He is the vital presence of God. Through the Spirit, Jesus lives in us. Through this one gift, He walks more closely with us than if we could walk with Him in person!
Pentecost made the difference for the 1st disciples of Christ. At Pentecost, the disciples pressed closer into God's presence. They humbled their hearts, confessed their unbelief and prayed with an intensity that couldn't be quenched. Day and night, they were consumed with one thought--that Christ would live in their hearts through faith. And the Spirit came in answer to their prayers. His presence burned in their lives. Thousands were converted in a day. The gospel was carried to the world in a single generation!
Do we need a Pentecost today? Pentecost is God's answer for a lack of harmony in our homes and churches. The Spirit brings unity. Pentecost is God's answer for why we continue to fall into sin, again and again. The Spirit brings victory. We need Pentecost today. It is God's answer to completing His work in our lives.
My Prayer
Dear Father in Heaven, oh how I need Your Spirit in my life! I am so slow of heart to believe all that You have said and so destitute of Your presence in my life. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I need Him more than any other gift. For I want the life that only He can bring. I want to walk with You and for everyone to tell that I too have been with Jesus! In His name, I pray. Amen.
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