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.”
Right before Jesus ascended into heaven He gave these powerful parting words. He wanted to make sure His disciples received all that He intended them to have so they could be His witnesses around the world. In other words, for Jesus’ disciples to effectively make new disciples they would need the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Greek word Jesus used for power was, “dunamis” and it means, “explosive energy and ability.” Jesus wanted His followers to have the same Holy Spirit ability that He had been given at His baptism when the Spirit came to Him in the form of a dove, Luke 3:22. Thus, to Jesus the endowment of power from the Holy Spirit was both a command and a necessity for effective ministry.
The main purpose for the disciples being endowed with power was to be Jesus’ witnesses. To be a witness for Jesus means to testify to others about who He is, what He commanded, and that He is coming back. As a result, all Christians are commanded to be filled with the Holy Spirit’s power to be Jesus’ witnesses.
Jesus also let the first disciples know that their calling to be witnesses wasn’t going to just be local but global. Jerusalem was their starting point, Judea and Samaria were outlining areas of Jerusalem they were to go to next, and then they were to go to the ends of the earth. The book of Acts records that the disciples kept Jesus’ commands- they witnessed in Jerusalem in Acts 2-7, in all of Judea and Samaria in Acts 8-12, and then headed to the ends of the earth in Acts 13-28.
Therefore, all Christians today should ask Jesus to fill them with the Holy Spirit’s explosive energy and ability to be His witnesses everywhere we go!
Reflection
Action
- Ask the Lord to fill you with the Holy Spirit’s power.
- Receive the endowment of power from the Holy Spirit.
- Be a witness for Jesus wherever you go.
