But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. – Acts 1:8
Earlier this month, four people exited a 1,700-square-foot enclosure they had lived in for over a year. The goal of the crew in their 3D-printed dome was to simulate human beings living on Mars, helping provide NASA with information for their planned future mission. Getting people to, and potentially getting them back from, the Red Planet, is the challenge engineers have been working on since before the moon landing in 1969. They need a more powerful source of energy than current propulsion systems, and it appears that the Mars rockets may utilize nuclear fusion.
Before His ascension into Heaven, Jesus laid out His agenda for the history of the world until His return: “you will receive power” and “you will be My witnesses.” Christ has vested you, by the Holy Spirit, with power, authority, might, ability, efficacy, and means for your mission. The book of Acts records incident after incident of actions by the disciples and apostles who were empowered by the Holy Spirit. The Greek word for power is dunamis. Our word dynamite is almost a transliteration of the Greek. In his commentary on the Book of Acts, F. N. Peloubet wrote that dunamis “expresses well the greatness of the power to overcome the obstacles in the way although the power bestowed was in its action more like that of the sun, which is infinitely greater than all the explosives in the world.”
When you receive Jesus Christ as Savior, you become the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, and you have everything necessary to be witnesses to the world of His power. This supernatural power changes lives and leads you to a life that imitates Christ. You have all the power you need, and then some. Evangelist Dwight L. Moody summed it up: “Without this power, our work will be drudgery. With it, it becomes a joyful task, a refreshing service.” Allow the Holy Spirit to direct your life and let His power flow through you in a way that people will know it is not you, but Christ working in you.
Today’s Verse: Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Recommended for further reading: Acts 1:1-11
1 In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.
4 And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” 9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
