Power From On High

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth.” After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

Acts 1:8-9

Forty days had passed since the empty tomb. Jesus had told them more than once He’d have to leave them, and had done His best to prepare them for His ascension:

·      He spoke about the kingdom of God (Acts 1:3).

·      He gave them the “Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20).

·      He reassured them: “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Ten days later, at Pentecost, the Holy Spirit dramatically made His presence known in all of them (Acts 2:1-4). The common factor was their faith in Jesus. 

The Holy Spirit takes up residence once you wholeheartedly confess Jesus as Lord. Filling is a different matter, a daily affair. We all need time with the Father and the Son, giving the Spirit control of our spirit, to ripen the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) in each of us. 

Nancy P

All Scripture quotations are from the NIV 1973, 1978, 1984, unless otherwise noted.