You Shall Receive Power!
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You Shall Recieve Power.
*This piece is one of the closing “chapters” from Unedited: Hope and Healing Through the Simple Habit of Bible Reading and Prayer
“But you shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you…” –Acts 1:8
As you’ll hear mentioned in the next essay, “Thoughts for the Road,” Bible reading and prayer are components of the journey of healing, and that journey begins with salvation.
When properly handling the Bible, we must bear in mind that its entire point is salvation. The story of the Bible is the story of Redemption, and redemption is what each of us need.
But how do we find salvation?
What I share here may be different from what you’ve been taught about salvation, but please read this and be open to something new; please be open to “more.” And please search this out in the Word of God for yourself. Eternal salvation is far too important to take someone else’s word for. We must each, as Paul wrote in Philippians 2:2, “…work out our own salvation with fear and trembling.”
The story of Redemption goes way back to the Garden of Eden in Genesis 1-3, when God created man for relationship, and man, through his decision to go against the commands of God, falls from that relationship. From the point of that fall, man’s ability to connect directly with God is broken, and humanity now lives in a world marked by death, decay, disease, and destruction. The effects of sin taint and mar everything that God had created to be “good.” Sin ushers in the judgement of God, for sin must always be judged. Death now became the final reality of the human existence. (Romans 6:23) We were powerless against the forces set in motion. But while that moment severed man’s connection to God, it also became the moment where God set a plan in motion to redeem humanity back to Himself. The plan to save humanity from their sin was God’s plan from the beginning. (Revelation 13:8)
The Bible is the slow unfolding of that plan.
Throughout the Old Testament, God wove together the storyline of redemption. We see God create a bloodline for the Savior and form a nation set apart to Himself. All the players and parts for God’s grand plan were slowly put in place: Abraham…Isaac…Jacob, whose 12 sons become the 12 tribes of Israel. The story continues through Moses and David…Solomon…Hezekiah…and more. Finally, the New Testament opens, and we hear an angelic proclamation: “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21) Jesus came to earth, “Emmanuel, God with us,” for the stated purpose of saving humanity from their sins. (Matthew 1:23)
In the Gospels, we see Jesus grow, step into an earthly ministry, which lasted 3 and half years, and we read about Him fulfilling his primary purpose: “…to give his life a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45) Each gospel writer conveys Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. Jesus willingly laid His life down as the final payment for man’s sin. He was crucified on a cross, buried in a guarded tomb, and, on the third day, He rose from the grave. Jesus won final victory over Satan, over sin, and over death itself. This is the reason we can be saved.
But the beauty of what Jesus did must be coupled with our response. We must respond to His finished work with obedient faith.
During His earthly ministry, we see that Jesus trained 12 men – 12 disciples, to establish His Kingdom, “the Church.” Following His victorious resurrection from the dead, Jesus spoke these words to His disciples before ascending back to Heaven:
“And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.” (Luke 24:49)
And, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
The disciples did just as Jesus had commanded and waited and prayed for the Promise in an upper room in Jerusalem. Finally, on the Day of Pentecost, we see the Holy Spirit and power poured out, evidenced by everyone speaking “the wonderful works of God” in languages they did not know. (Acts 2:1-11) There were people from all over gathered at Jerusalem, and when they heard the 120, they asked, “What in the world does this mean?” (Acts 2:12 paraphrased) Peter, the disciple commissioned by Jesus to establish His church, rose from the crowd, and preached the first sermon of the newborn Church. He began in the Old Testament and referenced Old Testament prophecy. He explained that what they were seeing is what the prophet Joel prophesied hundreds of years before:
“But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:…” (Acts 2:16-18, referencing Joel 2:28-29)
Peter continues with his sermon and preaches Jesus. As they listen, they are convicted by the power of God. They ask Peter and the rest of the Apostles how they should respond to this gospel message. (Acts 2:37) In reply to their question, Peter boldly proclaims the plan of salvation: “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” He gives them three steps of obedient faith to apply the gospel to their lives individually: 1. Repentance, 2. Water baptism in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins, and 3. The infilling of the Holy Spirit, evidenced by speaking in tongues. But he doesn’t stop there, he continues and says very plainly and emphatically, “For the promise is to you and to your children and to ALL that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” (Acts 2:39) Peter tells them very clearly how to act in response to the gospel and says that it is for EVERYONE forever. He says it is to “all who are afar off…” You and I are “all who are afar off.” 2,000 years after the Day of Pentecost, God is still pouring out the promise of the Father. The POWER promised with the Holy Ghost is still available to be experienced. It is still available to transform lives and re-write storylines.
The Plan of Salvation laid out by Peter is very simple:
· It is in repenting, sorrowing over and turning from our sin, that we experience a change of mind and a change of heart. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19, Mark 2:17, Luke 24:47)
· It is in applying the Name of Jesus to our lives, in the waters of baptism, that the stains of sin are washed away, the righteousness of God is applied, and the claim of death is removed from our life. (Acts 2:38, Romans 6:4, Colossians 2:12, 1 Peter 3:21)
· And it is with the infilling of the Holy Ghost, evidenced by speaking in tongues as it was in the book of Acts, that the connection to God that was severed in the garden is restored. The Holy Ghost gives us power to overcome our flesh; over the tendencies that have dominated our choices and responses. (Acts 2:38, Acts 10:44-46/all of Chapter 10, Acts 19:1-7, Romans 8:11)
This is the new birth, where we are born into the Kingdom of God, just as Jesus had said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” (John 3:5-7) This is the moment we are birthed into the Church.
“The Church” is not “a Church;” it is a people set apart to God. The Church is a conglomerate of disparate parts, comprised of lives from every corner of the globe and every walk of life. (Revelation 7:9) The church is open to anyone who will search out truth in the Word of God and walk in humble obedience to what they see on its pages.
“…let anyone who hears this say, “Come.” Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life.” (Revelation 22:17)
The Church and God’s plan of Salvation are open to all who are hungry and thirsty for more.
One day, time as we know it will end and eternity will begin. Each of us will “give account of himself to God.” (Romans 14:12) We will either stand in our own human “goodness,” or we will stand in the righteousness of God, covered in the blood He shed on the cross, which is applied to our lives in baptism.
And that’s not the end of the story. The hope of the Church is the hope of heaven. A place with no more tears or sorrow. A place where everything is restored to God’s original designs. A place of wholeness and restoration, where no effects of the fall persist. Eternal life in heaven with Jesus is the ultimate promise of the Bible.
“You shall receive power after the Holy Ghost is come upon you…” Power to live in a way you never thought possible. Power to overcome addictions and heartbreak. Power to understand the Word of God and live guided by the Spirit. Power to be a light in the world. And, ultimately, not just power, but eternal life.
‘For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
Thank you for joining me for this journey! Go grab your Bible and your journal!