08-06-24-DAILY READING-ENG.

EXPERIENCING THE SPIRIT

                                   WHERE IT ALL STARTED 

Looking back to the church in the first century, we're amazed at the impact of a people who appear to have had inadequate resources for such a monumental task. There were no seminaries to train their pastors, no beautiful church buildings in which to worship, and no such thing as a Bible in every member's hand. They had no elaborate sound systems or multimedia tools at their disposal, no celebrities to endorse their cause, and hardly any freedom to promote their belief in Jesus Christ. 

For the most part, they were plain men and women, insignificant and unknown, fighting against fierce opposition and hatred. But Scripture testifies that they “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6). Wave after wave of persecution broke over them, yet they emerged victorious. The message of the early church, as told in the book of Acts, is that the bare simplicity of the Christian faith is what counts. The testimony of early Christians was that God's people proclaimed the gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit and confirmed it with holy lives. So what's the secret? There is no secret. 

The Bible clearly tells us of a gift from God that unleashes the power and wisdom of His kingdom—providing “all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3). Jesus told the apostles not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for this promised gift from the Father: John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now…. You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. (Acts 1:5, 8) 

The result of the Spirit's coming upon the apostles was beyond earthshaking; the Spirit-filled disciples literally shook the gates of hell. So dramatic was the coming of the Spirit upon the apostles that their enemies couldn't deny the power and wisdom they displayed: “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled” (Acts 4:13). Does the world marvel at the church today? Unfortunately, much of what happens in the contemporary church is little more than a reflection of the values and the reasoning of the surrounding culture. When it comes to serving God, we tend to look at what we're good at and what we like to do, then serve according to our ability. 

The result: we don't need the Holy Spirit because we think we have everything under control. The world therefore sees good people doing good things for their God, but they don't see the power of God working through His people to accomplish what only He can do. So here's a question: will God ever ask you to do something you're not able to do? The answer is yes—all the time! It must be that way for God's glory and kingdom.

 If we function according to our ability alone, we get the glory; if we function according to the power of the Spirit within us, God gets the glory. He wants to reveal Himself‘to a watching world. The purposes of God are based not on our ability, but upon His ability to work through us. Hence, the gift! The Holy Spirit is the indispensable gift God has given to every believer. As Peter proclaimed on the day of Pentecost, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38).