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- Feb 9, 2004
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Holy Spirit
Power
At the beginning of Acts, Jesus' followers appear confused and fearful. But by the end of the book they are well on their way to transforming the Roman world with the gospel. What accounts for this dramatic change? Acts 1:8 provides the answer: “You shall receive power.” But notice:
The power promised was not force or political authority. Israel had enjoyed superiority under David and Solomon, but those days were a distant memory. Jesus was not indicating a revival of Jewish dominance. Instead, the word “power” means ability or capacity. Jesus promised that once the Holy Spirit came upon them, His followers would have a new ability.
The ability had more to do with being than doing. The believers would “be witnesses”.not just “do witnessing.” Evangelism is a process, not just an event. It involves a total lifestyle, not just occasional efforts.
The power came from without, not from within. The believers were not to manufacture their own ways of proclaiming the gospel, but to look for supernatural ability from the Spirit to make them effective in gospel presentation. The power came when the Holy Spirit arrived, not before.
The believers were to be witnesses to Christ, not to themselves. They were to make disciples not to themselves but to the risen Lord (Matt. 28:18–20).
The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament
No clearer statement of the intimate interworking of the triune God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—and especially of the Spirit's powerful role can be found in the Old Testament than in Isaiah's prophecy of the Servant of the Lord (Is. 42:1–9). The passage summarizes the redeeming work of all three Persons of the Trinity in the salvation of the lost. Thus it ties together in remarkable harmony both the Old Testament and New Testament understandings of God's grace. It also sheds light on our understanding of the Holy Spirit.
Some Bible readers assume that the Spirit's activity in Scripture is limited to the New Testament. But actually He is just as active in the Old:
The Spirit participated in creation (Gen. 1:2; Job 26:13; Is. 32:15).
The Spirit gives life to humanity and the other creatures (Ps. 104:29–30). It is interesting that when Genesis says God endows people with life by breathing into their nostrils the “breath of life” (Gen. 2:7), the word for “breath” is the same word translated elsewhere as “spirit”
The Spirit strives with sinners (Gen. 6:3), which is perhaps related to His work in convicting people of sin (John 16:8–11).
The Spirit came upon certain judges, warriors, and prophets in a way that gave them extraordinary power: for example, Joshua (Num. 27:18), Othniel (Judg. 3:10), Gideon (6:34), Samson (13:25; 14:6), and Saul (1 Sam. 10:9–10). However, the Spirit later departed from Saul because of his disobedience (16:14).
The Spirit played a prominent role in the long span of Old Testament prophecy. David declared that “the Spirit of the Lord spoke by me, and His word was on my tongue” (2 Sam. 23:2). Likewise, Ezekiel reported that “the Spirit entered me when He spoke to me” (Ezek. 2:2).
The Spirit inspired holiness in Old Testament believers (Ps. 143:10). And Scripture promised that someday God would put His Spirit in His people in a way that would cause them to live according to His statutes (Ezek. 36:27).
The Spirit was crucial in helping God's people anticipate the ministry of the Messiah. For example, Isaiah 11:1–5 is a trinitarian preview of the working of the Father, the Spirit, and the Son, who is the Branch of Jesse. Looking forward to the ministry of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit inspired Isaiah to prophesy: “The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him” (Is. 11:2), inspiring God's Chosen One with wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, fear of the Lord, righteousness, and faithfulness. Thus we come full cycle to the New Testament, where Jesus claimed to be the fulfillment of this prophecy (Is. 61:1–2; Luke 4:18–19).
The Promise of the Spirit
Joel described the time when God would pour out His Spirit on all flesh as “afterward” (Joel 2:28). He is believed to have been referring to the days of the Messiah, which were to follow the period of restoration (possibly from the exile; Joel 2:18–27).
Peter quoted Joel's prophecy of the Spirit in full and claimed its fulfillment at Pentecost (Acts 2:16–21). In a way of speaking, that makes Joel a spiritual “grandfather” of the church. Christians are now experiencing the Spirit in fulfillment of Joel's promise. However, the prophet also describes other events associated with the “day of the Lord”.which it appears will not have their ultimate fulfillment until the end times.
Empowered for Ministry
If you've ever assumed that God's work in the world is accomplished primarily by ordained clergy, then you need to look carefully at Jesus' words to the hometown crowd of Nazareth. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me”.He declared, applying an Old Testament prophecy to Himself (Luke 4:18–19; Is. 61:1–2). “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21).
The promise fulfilled was that the Messiah had come and would do all of the things foretold in the ancient text. But the text went on to make more promises about what would happen after the Messiah's initial work: “You shall be named the priests of the Lord, they shall call you the servants of our God” (Is. 61:6).
This would be a profound change. The tasks of “ministry” would no longer be done just by priests, rabbis, or clergy, but by all of God's people. Just as the Spirit of the Lord had come upon Christ, enabling Him to accomplish God's work, so the Spirit would enable Christ's followers to accomplish God's work, too.
If you are a believer in Christ, God has empowered you with His Spirit. Are you carrying out His assignments for you?
Power
At the beginning of Acts, Jesus' followers appear confused and fearful. But by the end of the book they are well on their way to transforming the Roman world with the gospel. What accounts for this dramatic change? Acts 1:8 provides the answer: “You shall receive power.” But notice:
The power promised was not force or political authority. Israel had enjoyed superiority under David and Solomon, but those days were a distant memory. Jesus was not indicating a revival of Jewish dominance. Instead, the word “power” means ability or capacity. Jesus promised that once the Holy Spirit came upon them, His followers would have a new ability.
The ability had more to do with being than doing. The believers would “be witnesses”.not just “do witnessing.” Evangelism is a process, not just an event. It involves a total lifestyle, not just occasional efforts.
The power came from without, not from within. The believers were not to manufacture their own ways of proclaiming the gospel, but to look for supernatural ability from the Spirit to make them effective in gospel presentation. The power came when the Holy Spirit arrived, not before.
The believers were to be witnesses to Christ, not to themselves. They were to make disciples not to themselves but to the risen Lord (Matt. 28:18–20).
The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament
No clearer statement of the intimate interworking of the triune God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—and especially of the Spirit's powerful role can be found in the Old Testament than in Isaiah's prophecy of the Servant of the Lord (Is. 42:1–9). The passage summarizes the redeeming work of all three Persons of the Trinity in the salvation of the lost. Thus it ties together in remarkable harmony both the Old Testament and New Testament understandings of God's grace. It also sheds light on our understanding of the Holy Spirit.
Some Bible readers assume that the Spirit's activity in Scripture is limited to the New Testament. But actually He is just as active in the Old:
The Spirit participated in creation (Gen. 1:2; Job 26:13; Is. 32:15).
The Spirit gives life to humanity and the other creatures (Ps. 104:29–30). It is interesting that when Genesis says God endows people with life by breathing into their nostrils the “breath of life” (Gen. 2:7), the word for “breath” is the same word translated elsewhere as “spirit”
The Spirit strives with sinners (Gen. 6:3), which is perhaps related to His work in convicting people of sin (John 16:8–11).
The Spirit came upon certain judges, warriors, and prophets in a way that gave them extraordinary power: for example, Joshua (Num. 27:18), Othniel (Judg. 3:10), Gideon (6:34), Samson (13:25; 14:6), and Saul (1 Sam. 10:9–10). However, the Spirit later departed from Saul because of his disobedience (16:14).
The Spirit played a prominent role in the long span of Old Testament prophecy. David declared that “the Spirit of the Lord spoke by me, and His word was on my tongue” (2 Sam. 23:2). Likewise, Ezekiel reported that “the Spirit entered me when He spoke to me” (Ezek. 2:2).
The Spirit inspired holiness in Old Testament believers (Ps. 143:10). And Scripture promised that someday God would put His Spirit in His people in a way that would cause them to live according to His statutes (Ezek. 36:27).
The Spirit was crucial in helping God's people anticipate the ministry of the Messiah. For example, Isaiah 11:1–5 is a trinitarian preview of the working of the Father, the Spirit, and the Son, who is the Branch of Jesse. Looking forward to the ministry of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit inspired Isaiah to prophesy: “The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him” (Is. 11:2), inspiring God's Chosen One with wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, fear of the Lord, righteousness, and faithfulness. Thus we come full cycle to the New Testament, where Jesus claimed to be the fulfillment of this prophecy (Is. 61:1–2; Luke 4:18–19).
The Promise of the Spirit
Joel described the time when God would pour out His Spirit on all flesh as “afterward” (Joel 2:28). He is believed to have been referring to the days of the Messiah, which were to follow the period of restoration (possibly from the exile; Joel 2:18–27).
Peter quoted Joel's prophecy of the Spirit in full and claimed its fulfillment at Pentecost (Acts 2:16–21). In a way of speaking, that makes Joel a spiritual “grandfather” of the church. Christians are now experiencing the Spirit in fulfillment of Joel's promise. However, the prophet also describes other events associated with the “day of the Lord”.which it appears will not have their ultimate fulfillment until the end times.
Empowered for Ministry
If you've ever assumed that God's work in the world is accomplished primarily by ordained clergy, then you need to look carefully at Jesus' words to the hometown crowd of Nazareth. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me”.He declared, applying an Old Testament prophecy to Himself (Luke 4:18–19; Is. 61:1–2). “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21).
The promise fulfilled was that the Messiah had come and would do all of the things foretold in the ancient text. But the text went on to make more promises about what would happen after the Messiah's initial work: “You shall be named the priests of the Lord, they shall call you the servants of our God” (Is. 61:6).
This would be a profound change. The tasks of “ministry” would no longer be done just by priests, rabbis, or clergy, but by all of God's people. Just as the Spirit of the Lord had come upon Christ, enabling Him to accomplish God's work, so the Spirit would enable Christ's followers to accomplish God's work, too.
If you are a believer in Christ, God has empowered you with His Spirit. Are you carrying out His assignments for you?