Being empowered by the Holy Spirit: "Living in a spirit of urgnecy that produces a bold proclamation"
Acts 4:31 “After this prayer the meeting place shook, and they were filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the Word of God with boldness”
This is one of the most powerful chapters in all of scripture. All throughout this chapter we see examples of how, through the power of the Holy Spirit, we are to be the people of God in the world. As Peter and John stand before the religious authorities they stand up tall in the Holy Spirit and proclaim the power and name of Jesus Christ as the source of all they do. As they leave and gather with the Church, the believers begin to pray and they pray for the power of Christ to work in and through them to empower them to witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This prayer invites the Holy Spirit to fall upon them and as they are filled with the Holy Spirit they are empowered to leave that place to go and preach the Word of God with boldness.
I can’t help reading this text today and get inspired to fall upon my face and ask for this same empowerment by the Holy Spirit. This urgency that comes from the power of the Holy Spirit is something that continues to drive my being and is the one place that evil continues to try to stall. If I loose this urgency then speaking with boldness is the next thing to go. The one thing that comes through so clearly in the text today is that this group of people were completely devoted to spreading the message of Jesus Christ. They felt a deep urgency for proclaiming the gospel and this urgency produced a fruit of preaching with boldness. Perhaps this urgency comes from the power of the Holy Spirit empowering them to see the world as God sees it and to be broken for those that didn’t know Jesus.
Lord, I come to you today feeling this same urgency that is displayed in the text today. I come to you today hearing the call to be bold for you in proclaiming the gospel. I come before you today desiring to be completely and rawly yours. I also come to you this morning feeling evil’s pressure to keep me from this boldness; attempting to get me off my track of urgency and into a track of status quo. I pray in Jesus name that you would protect me from this evil and empower me through the Holy Spirit to live into this text. May the Holy Spirit fill me today with an urgency for your gospel and empower me to continue preaching your word with boldness. May the Church never tame down this boldness for you; empower me never to keep you into box or become some kind of cookie cutter company pastor, but may I be the kind of Leader that would preach your word with boldness and seek to please you rather than man. May you continue to pour out your spirit of urgency that would continue to fuel my boldness for you. Thank you for rescuing me from the depths of my sin and giving me a new life; continue to use me as your vessel in leading others to your saving grace. Amen!!!
Through the Holy Spirit I continue to have a sense of urgency for the gospel which leads to the empowerment to preach the Word of God with boldness.
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JESUS CHRIST IS THE SAME YESTERDAY, TODAY ,NOW AND FOREVER MORE…..AMEN