When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Today churches everywhere are celebrating the Day of Pentecost, the birth of the church. They were filled with the Holy Spirit. But what did that mean for the first Christians, and what does that mean for Christians today?
ACTS 1:1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen.
“All that Jesus BEGAN to do and to teach” – the four Gospels do not record the totality of all that Jesus said and did. They only record his earthly ministry up to his resurrection and ascension. Luke begins this second volume of his account of everything Jesus said and did by referring to his first volume, which we know as Luke’s Gospel. That Gospel told us about the beginning of Jesus’s ministry, all the way through to His ascension. But then in Acts Luke picks up the story again at that point and goes on to tell us of everything that Jesus CONTINUED to do and to teach AFTER had ascended. It is very clear that for Luke, what we call the Acts of the Apostles should really be called the Acts of the Risen Christ through the Holy Spirit.
The Ascension of Jesus Christ to glory was not the END of the STORY. It was really only the end of the beginning. Luke will now tell us what Jesus did next, through his disciples empowered by the Holy Spirit. The Longer Ending of Mark makes the same point.
Mark 16 19 So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 And they went out and proclaimed the good news everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that accompanied it.
Acts is the story of how the Risen Christ continued to bring salvation through the first Christians preaching the gospel and by the miracles God worked through them. After his resurrection, Jesus had explained to his followers what was going to happen next.
Luke 24 46 (Jesus) told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
You will be clothed with power from on high. This was gift of the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, the Comforter, the Helper, the Paraclete who Jesus had promised. All these promises were fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost.
Even after the resurrection the disciples had not really understood what Jesus was talking about. They thought that God’s promise was to do with the Christ’s Kingdom coming in power to set the nation of Israel free from the occupying Roman armies.
Acts 16 So when they met together, they asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.
In fact. the gift that God had promised was not the liberation of the nation of Israel, but something far more wonderful. It was a promise which would be far more dramatic and far-reaching than the apostles could possibly imagine.
Acts 1 8 But 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.”
God’s promise was nothing less than the Holy Spirit, God Himself coming to live in every Christian. The Holy Spirit bringing power, supremely power to be witnesses for Jesus, to preach repentance and forgiveness of sins to all nations. Power from on high.
Acts 1 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses
The important thing to notice about Acts 1:8 is that those words are not a command. Jesus does not say, “you must be my witnesses.” Acts 1:8 is a promise, “you will be my witnesses.”
In fact in Acts 1:8 we have two promises which fit seamlessly together. “You will receive power” AND “you will be my witnesses.” Luke 24 talked about “the eleven and their companions” so it is clear that Jesus had other disciples who were also there in the Upper Room when Jesus appeared to them and promised that they would all be “clothed with power from on high.”
“You will received power and you will be my witnesses.” These words have a particular significance because of their place in this book of Acts. In histories written in those days, the first speech the central character makes is always of particular significance. It gives us a summary of the whole theme of the book. So in Luke’s Gospel Jesus’s first sermon at Nazareth, His Nazareth manifesto, sets the programme for the whole book, In the same way here Acts 1:8 sets the programme for the whole book and the rest of Acts will tell the story of how these promises were fulfilled.
Acts 1 8 But 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.”
Two promises together making one promise which will be for all disciples of Jesus for all time. WE will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon US, and WE will be witnesses for Jesus, starting wherever we are and spreading throughout the whole earth.
In the Old Testament we find the word “power” more than a hundred times, and there it refers to the strength of individual men and women. In that sense our human power can come from training or experience or human wisdom or hard work. The New Testament again speaks around 100 times of power – but the word refers not to the strength of men and women, but to the almighty power of the almighty God. When Jesus promised to his disciples “power from on high”, power to be witnesses, THAT is the kind of power He was talking about. The Greek word in question is dunamis and from that root we get two significant English words. The first is dynamo – which generates electrical power. The second is dynamite – the explosive. Jesus promises to give his disciples the power of the Holy Spirit, dunamis, the dynamo and the dynamite of the Christian life!
The power of the Holy Spirit was expressed in many different ways in the lives of the first Christians. We could talk about power in signs and wonders, miracles of healing and deliverance. We could equally talk about power to live the Christian life in victory, experiencing the power of Christ’s resurrection in our own lives. But today I want us to focus on the promise we find in Acts 1:8. You will receive power and that is,
Power to be witnesses for Jesus
Acts 4:33 With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all.
This is the power Jesus promised to his disciples just before He ascended. Power to be witnesses for Jesus. Michael Green memorably wrote,
“Who is it who convicts people of sin? it is the Holy Spirit!
Who enables people to say Jesus is Lord? it is the Holy Spirit!
Who baptises people into Christ? it is the Holy Spirit!
Who brings new birth? it is the Holy Spirit!
Who assures us that we belong to Jesus? it is the Holy Spirit!
Who produces the fruit of changed characters? it is the Holy Spirit!
Who gives us gifts so that we can serve God more effectively? It is the Holy Spirit!”
All these activities are the workings of God the Holy Spirit bringing people to faith in Jesus Christ. Our part as believers is simply to make sure we are available to God and ready to obey Him when He wants to use us, and that we don’t get in God’s way by trying to do His work for Him! The Holy Spirit is already at work in the lives of people who are not yet believers. And the Holy Spirit is at work in our lives too. It’s the Holy Spirit who gives us the words to say when we share the gospel.
So why do Christians find it so hard to share our faith? Some Christians have never tried talking about Jesus to their friends before and are understandably nervous about starting. There are pressures from society making it less acceptable to talk about our faith. It is considered politically incorrect to challenge somebody else’s opinion. It is not easy to proclaim that Jesus Christ is unique, the only way to God and the only source of salvation. These claims can sound arrogant and even rude, even though we know they are true.
One common fear is that of being rejected. We are scared of how the other person might react. We could be laughed at, or worse. In his book Mission Under Scrutiny, Andrew Kirk wrote, “(Christians) are afraid of giving offence, causing embarrassment or being met with apathy, misunderstanding or ridicule. They may not wish to risk valued friendships. Perhaps the biggest cause of misgivings is the fear of being made to appear foolish, and thus of betraying their faith.” In other words, when it comes to talking about Jesus, many Christians are simply scared of getting it wrong. We don’t know what to say. We are afraid we might do more harm than good. We might not be able to give answers to tricky questions. We are scared we might fail and let God down.
Some Christians are disillusioned because they have tried talking about Jesus before but feel they have failed. It has certainly become much harder than it used to be to talk about Jesus at work. People are understandably fearful of the potential consequences of witnessing for Christ in the workplace or in public places. We recognise that declaring that “Jesus is Lord” and telling people that we are His disciples will sometimes carry many kinds of risks. Despite these pressures, the courageous witness of countless believers through history and so many around the world still today puts many of us to shame. When I was minister in Brentwood our church had links with churches in Bulgaria and I met Christians there who had been imprisoned for their faith. When I visited churches in Uganda I met Christians who had been brutally persecuted in the time of Idi Amin. These all talk boldly about Jesus even though it may cost them their freedom or even their lives.
When we think about sharing our faith, we may be scared that we won’t know what to say. During the last week of His early ministry in Jerusalem, Jesus promised his disciples that the Holy Spirit would give them words to speak on occasions when they were called to preach the gospel and to testify about Him.
Mark 13 9 “You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. 10 And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. 11 Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.”
Luke’s version of that saying in Luke 21:15 Jesus says, 15 For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.
The Holy Spirit will give us the words – power to be witnesses for Jesus. The apostle Paul wrote that even he was scared when he was preaching the gospel. But it was the power of the Holy Spirit which brought the Corinthians to faith in Christ.
1 Corinthians 2: 3 I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. 4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.
We may also experience weakness, fear and much trembling. But even then God’s power can still work through us. So we should take every opportunity to talk about Jesus. Michael Green wrote, “Personal conversation is the best way of evangelism. It is natural, it can be done anywhere, it can be done by anyone.” Every church and every Christian needs to be making the very best of every opportunity. Again as Michael Green said, “It is not until church members have the enthusiasm to speak to their friends and acquaintances about Jesus that anybody will really believe we have got good news to share.”
We may feel we could never tell other people about Jesus. But it’s not about skillful speaking and persuasive words. It’s about the power of the Holy Spirit working in us, and working in the people we are talking to! And that power isn’t just for ministers and evangelists, but for EVERY Christian. That is what Jesus promised – we will ALL be clothed in power from on high, power to be witnesses for Jesus!
WE CAN THINK in advance about the kinds of questions people ask about God and the Christian faith. We can prepare to give an answer for the hope that is in us. WE CAN LEARN some scripture – Bible stories and stories Jesus told. WE CAN PREPARE what we might say to tell other people about the difference Jesus makes in our own lives. AND THEN WE CAN CONFIDENTLY TRUST in God the Holy Spirit to help us to answer – power to be witnesses for Jesus.
Samuel Chadwick (1832–1917)
“To the church, Pentecost brought light, power, joy. There came to each illumination of mind, assurance of heart, intensity of love, fullness of power, exuberance of joy. No one needed to ask if they had received the Holy Ghost. Fire is self-evident. So is power!”
We need more of this power from on high. More of the dynamo and the dynamite of the Spirit in our lives and in our church. More power to be witnesses for Jesus. And that is what Jesus promises us.
Acts 1 8 But 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.”
