09/10/2023
VERSE
Acts 1:8 (KJV) 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.
INSPIRATION
Verse 5. Power here means supernatural energy and ability. To be God’s witnesses in a hostile world, to live and speak and serve as they ought, they needed more power than they possessed by nature, and more than they had received as a result of the new birth (John 1:12-13; 3:3, 5, 8). The same is true today. They needed and we need the Spirit’s fullness. “Witnesses” see Luke 24:48; John 15:27; Acts 2:32; 3:15; 5:32; 10:39; 13:31; 22:15. A witness is someone who tells others what he has seen or heard or knows by experience. Apostles proclaimed the facts of Jesus’ life, death, resurrection and ascension – facts they themselves had seen with their own eyes. And they taught what they themselves had heard Him teach. Taking this verse we can divide the book of Acts into three parts – witness in Jerusalem (chapters 1–7), witness in Judea and Samaria (chapters 8–12), witness to other parts of the world (chapters 13–28). This witness to the truth still continues.
Now God’s servants everywhere in the world proclaim the truth they have learned from the testimony of the original apostles who saw and heard the Lord Jesus. They can testify also to a personal experience with Christ.
The Holy Spirit serves as a witness to the things God has done through His Son, Jesus Christ. It is through the Holy Spirit we are able to testify of the good things God has done, as well as preach the message of Christ to the world. The Holy Spirit empowers us and enables us to preach effectively and perform miracles if need be.
PRAYER
Dear God, I thank You for the gift You gave me in the form of the Holy Spirit, Your Spirit. Thank You, Lord, that because of Your Holy Spirit, I am never away from You. Lord, I ask that I may remain attentive to the guiding and teaching of the Holy Spirit, through Your word. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.