The Need to Wait on God - To tell the world about the Message of Jesus

Luke 24:49 "And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Introduction & Review
In yesterday's post we were interested in understanding the need to wait on God for the sake of being empowered by His Spirit to do His bidding. Between the time Jesus ascended in Luke 24:50-53 and Acts 1:9-11 until the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2 was 10 days. In yesterday's post we also looked at other scriptures that feature ten day periods of time as signifying those seasons in which God desired to impart new insights, faithfulness, strength or tests of character.  That timeframe was to be the specific time of waiting for those 120 disciples in the upperoom in Jerusalem. In these past couple of posts we have explored how both sets of verses in Luke and Acts give us some reasons as to why Jesus had these disciples to wait.

1). Wait for reception of the Father's promise. Luke 24:49a & Acts 1:4

2). Wait for empowerment from the Holy Spirit. Luke 24:49b & Acts 1:8a

3). Wait so as to minister the message about the Son to all people. Acts 1:8b

In today's post we once again consider the need to wait on God - with the emphasis being upon positioning ourselves to minister the message about the Son to all people.  Truly we wait, as the the early church had to wait, to receive more about Who God is and what he has for us, as well as to be empowered for His work.  But in this post today, the way we know we are to go from waiting to doing is when we have a message to tell.

We need more of God's presence and power in our lives and churches
Ronnie Floyd is a pastor of a large church in Arkansas who has written a wonderful book entitled: "The Power of the Prayer and Fasting". The one statement he writes is really apropos to the subject of our post today on the need to wait on God.  The quote is a couple paragraphs but well worth the read: "God can do more in a moment than I could ever do in a lifetime. God can also do more in and through the church in a moment than programs, ministries, technical excellence, great worship or mere machinery. No one can take the place of God. Nothing can take the place of God. I am weary of what I hear about the passivity of the churches today in our nation and world. While many churches sleep or act daily as if they are out for an evening drive, many other churches are chasing the latest fad for the church today. It appears that most are looking for a short-term success and a shortcut to get there. What is the problem? 

When we look at the church today, we are seeing what man can do. While we may have greater technology or more expressive worship or more fine-tuned targeted ministries, let me ask you this:Do we have more of God? I am convinced today more than ever before in my ministry that it is past time for the church to see what God can do."1

What Ronnie Floyd wrote is so true! I echo with him the fact that we need more of God in our churches and in our lives.  So often I'll hear in conferences or read in books how leaders and pastors need to "cast a vision" for their church or people will often ask: "what is our mission?" or "what is our message?" Whenever you look at the early church and how Jesus positioned his disciples to wait upon God, you understand that lest they had waited per His instructions -they would not had had a message to tell, nor a vision to cast!

We wait on God who is the message we are to tell
Two key passages must be considered together to understand the message that the early church communicated throughout the Medditerranean world of the first century.  The first text is what we call "The Great Commission" and is found in Matthew 28:18-20  "And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” The second text is the one we have been focusing upon these past several days - Acts 1:8 "but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

Both of these texts appear to have two seemingly different emphases: Matthew's text has Jesus telling His Disciples to "go and tell" and the Acts 1:8 passage has Jesus telling His disciples to "wait" before going and telling.  Harmonizing both of these texts together yields the pattern of waiting and then going. For 40 days these disciples had been in a "holding pattern" as Jesus made various post-resurrection appearances to them, instructing them and demonstrating to them the new realities of His post-resurrected humanity.

Now as Jesus was getting ready to ascend out of sight, they would need to wait ten more days until the full outpouring of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost occurred. The message of the Great Commission required an accompanying time of meeting with the Lord.  

The linkage between the heart and the mouth in scripture
A question for you and I to consider is: "how well do we know the Jesus revealed on the pages of the Bible?" Only when we get to know Him in the scripture will we then come to grasp what the Spirit is telling us about Him in our hearts. Oftentimes in the scriptures we see the link between the heart and the mouth. Matthew 12:35 "The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil." Luke 6:45 "The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart." 

As we come to the epistles, the linkage between the heart and mouth in spiritual matters is continued. Romans 10:9-10  "that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation." Ephesians 4:29 "Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edificationaccording to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear."  In all of these passages the idea is made plain: that whatever message flows out of our mouth comes as a result of the overflow of the heart. When we communicate, its not just the words, but the way in which we say the words, the tone of our voice and the main topics of our discussion.  

How God uses waiting periods to brew forth a message from the Word for all to hear
I find it interesting how often God would have His people go through seasons of waiting to brew forth some changes in their hearts.  Only a changed heart can communicate a life changing message.  Moses spent 40 years on the backside of a Midianite desert, Elijah the prophet was brought to a brook in a desert, Jesus Himself spent the first 30 years of His life in relative obscurity and the Apostle Paul spent 3 years in Damscus following His conversion.  All of these, and many more, went through extended seasons of watching and waiting before going forth to proclaim their message.  Habakkuk the prophet relays how in waiting on God he was getting prepared for the right moment to deliver God's message: "I will stand on my guard post and station myself on the rampart; And I will keep watch to see what He will speak to me, And how I may reply when I am reproved. 2 Then the Lord answered me and said, “Record the vision And inscribe it on tablets, That the one who reads it may run.
3 “For the vision is yet for the appointed time;
It hastens toward the goal and it will not fail.
Though it tarries, wait for it; For it will certainly come, it will not delay."

Such waiting seasons are often prescribed by God to give ourselves a chance to recallibrate our hearts to the rhythm of His voice and leading in our lives. The message of Jesus Christ is not just about Him, but is Him.  Whenever we show God how willing we are to follow Him, only then can we be effective in calling others to do the same.  

More tomorrow....

Endnotes:
1. Ronnie Floyd. The Power of the Prayer and Fasting. B&H Books. 2010. Page 144

The Need to Wait on God - Empowerment from on High

Luke 24:49 "And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Introduction & Review
In yesterday's post we did an overview of what scripture had to teach on the subject of waiting on God and zeroed in on Jesus' final instructions to His disciples in His post-resurrection appearances in Luke 24:49 and Acts 1. Between the time Jesus ascended in Luke 24:50-53 and Acts 1:9-11 until the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2 is 10 days.  That timeframe was to be the specific time of waiting.  We saw yesterday how both sets of verses in Luke and Acts give us some reasons as to why Jesus had these disciples to wait.

1). Wait for reception of (greater illumination) of Who God is and what He has for you. Luke 24:49a & Acts 1:4

2). Wait for empowerment from the Holy Spirit. Luke 24:49b & Acts 1:8a

3). Wait so as to minister the message about the Son to all people. Acts 1:8b

We focused mainly on the first thought and concluded that one of the reasons Jesus had his disciples to wait, and why He often has us to wait, is to receive what He has for us and who He is. Jesus in His post-resurrected humanity breathed out additional grace and Spirit enablement upon the disciples. He "upgraded" them so to speak so that they could relate to Jesus. Soon He was going to be ascending and was going to be glorified ever further in His post-Pentecost state at the right hand of the Father.  In order for the apostles and the early church to enjoy and commune with the Post-Pentecost Jesus, they would require the full-orbed outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Much like what would take place if we plugged a toaster wired for 120 volts into a 240 outlet, these disciples required 10 days of waiting and refreshment and empowerment from on high to operate in all God was going to be requiring from them. Today we consider the second main reason we need to wait on God, so as to receive empowerment from on high.

A great quote that relates waiting on God and prayer
E.M Bounds was a preacher who prayed and a prayer warrior who preached.  His classic book: "Purpose in Prayer" is a standard on the subject of prayer and is recommended for the reader.  In the book Bounds explains how there can be no substitute for prayer, which touches upon our subject today about the need to wait on God.  E.M Bounds writes: "We cannot run our spiritual operations on the prayers of the past generation. Many persons believe in the efficacy (effectiveness) of prayer, but not many pray. Prayer is the easiest and the hardest of all things, the simplest and the sublimest (most profound); the weakest and the most powerful; its results lie outside the range of human possibilities - they are limited only by the omnipotence (all powerfulness) of God."1 

Jesus had the disciples wait in order to be empowered by the Holy Spirit
Truly prayer can be likened unto a lightening rod that points up into the air.  A saint who is in a posture of waiting on God will be likened unto that lightening rod.  Lightening rods can go for long extended periods of time before lightening strikes. Saints who wait on God do so until God in His Sovereign activity chooses to strike with His Omnipotent power to both energize and mobilize the saint. As Jesus was instructing His followers in the days leading up to His ascension, He knew they would need further enablement and empowerment to operate in the level God was calling them.  Luke 24:49b states - "but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Any Jewish person would had recognized the prophecies of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit from Jesus' phrase "clothes with power from on high".  Prophecies such as Isaiah 32:15 and Joel 2:28-29 looked forward to a time at the end of history where messiah would return, restore the nation in repentance and salvation and pour out the Holy Spirit.  Undoubtedly as the disciples heard jesus speak these words, they would had perhaps been amazed at the fact that Jesus was moving up some dates so to speak - and that the outpouring of the Holy Spirit was going to be previewed in them.  Acts 1:8 re-echoes Jesus' words - "but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

Why empowerment was needed, and why waiting was required
We have mentioned this already but it is worth noting again, namely that whatever experiences the disciples had with Jesus, a measure of the Spirit's presence and power was required for them to appreciate and enjoy Him.  In John 14:16-17 Jesus indicated that the Spirit of God had been "with them" in their journeys with him during his earthly ministry.  However the time was coming when the Father in His name would send the Holy Spirit to dwell "in them". When Jesus died on the cross, the Disciples' fellowship with the pre-cross incarnate Jesus ended. 

However following His resurrection, a whole new experience and level was going to occur - namely the post-resurrected incarnated Jesus. Unlike before, Jesus now could walk through walls, dissappear from plain site and take on different forms.  It is no wonder He breathed "upon" and "into them" a greater measure of the Spirit in John 20:22. For 40 days the disciples would be encountered ten times by Jesus, instructed in further teachings about the Kingdom and shown further miracles. (Acts 1:1-3). Much like a computer that receives periodic upgrades to handle greater loads of information and new demands, Jesus' did the same for His disciples.

But now the 40 days were coming to a close, and the post-resurrected incarnate Jesus was getting ready to ascend into Heaven.  Jesus in His humanity was going to be experienced by the disciples in a whole new dimension and altered way like never before. The moment Jesus began to defy gravity and ascend into the clouds, His ascension transformed his human nature from that of post-resurrection glory to what would be the post-pentecost incarnate Christ following the day of Pentecost.

Why the disciples had to wait for ten days 
The waiting period of ten days between His ascension and Pentecost is not a random period of time.  Studies throughout the Bible reveal that ten day periods of time were used by God and His people to communicate increased illumination, empowerment and further defining of identity.  David in 1 Samuel 25:38-39 acknowledges God's deliverance of him from an enemy following a ten day waiting period of silence and anticipation until the enemy died. Jeremiah in Jeremiah 42:7 had the people of Israel wait ten days until he delivered a message from God to them regarding their future. Daniel in Daniel 1:12-14 fasted from meats for ten days to demonstrate to the pagan authorities the ability of God to sustain he and his friends. When we study other passages concerning the relationship between empowerment and waiting on God (Psalm 27:14; 123:2; Lamentations 3:25; 2 Cor 12:9-10) it is crystal clear that the pattern of waiting on the Holy Spirit in Acts 1:13-2:1 was Divinely ordained was for the sake of further empowerment.

Life application: 
If we as the church today are ever going to move forward in the Lord, we need to practice waiting on God for the sake of being empowered and illuminated by His Spirit through His Word. The church of history is a connected to that infant Pentecost church by the Holy scriptures.  So if anything, we need to return back to the Bible. Waiting on God does not necessarily equal inactivity. 

Secondly, in Acts 2:1 we see the early church gathered "in one accord" in the upper room.  This phrase "in one accord" carries with it the idea of prayer and intercession, an idea we find similarly expressed throughout the book of Acts. (1:14; 2:46; 4:24; 5:12; 12:12) Thus increasing our emphasis upon prayer will practically enable us to be in a mode of waiting on God. 

Then thirdly, as we return back to the Bible and become a people of prayer, waiting on God includes the idea of doing it together in assembly with one another. The repetition of "together" and "with one accord" meant that the people were placing themselves corporately in order under God's authority as a local church. Unity does not happen automatically, it require intentional effort on the church's part. By getting back to the Bible, to prayer and to fellowship with one another, we can put into practice the necessity of waiting on God, and then we will empowered by Him to move forward to do His bidding.

More tomorrow..... Endnotes:
1. E.M Bounds. Purpose in Prayer. Moody Press. 

The Need to Wait on God - To receive what He has and a greater illumination of Who He is

Luke 24:49 And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Introduction:

I thought I would begin today's post with a quote from one of my favorite writers - Oswald Chambers. In the quote Oswald Chambers is explaining how and why God has us to wait: "Whenever God gives a vision to a Christian, it is as if He puts him in "the shadow of His hand" (Isaiah 49:2). The saint's duty is to be still and listen. There is a "darkness" that comes from too much light. (When that happens), is the time to listen. The story of Abram and Hagar in Genesis 16 is an excellent example of listening to so-called good advice during a time of darkness, rather than waiting on God to send the light. When God gives you a vision and darkness follows, wait. God will bring the vision He has given you to reality in your life if you will wait on His timing. Never try to help God fulfill His word."

Chambers then tells the account of Abram and Hagar heeding Sarai's advice and producing Ishamael by natural means.  Rather than waiting on God for an Isaac, and Ishamael was the result.  As the piece draws to an end Chambers writes: "There is never any need to pretend that your life is filled with joy and confidence; just wait upon God and be grounded in Him (see Isaiah 50:10-11). Do I trust at all in the flesh? Or have I learned to go beyond all confidence in myself and other people of God? Do I trust in books and prayers or other joys in my life? Or have I placed my confidence in God Himself, not in His blessings? 'I Am Almighty God-El Shaddai, the All-Powerful God (Genesis 17:1). The reason we are all being disciplined is so that we will know that God is real. As soon as God becomes real to us, people pale by comparison."1

On a bright day it is sometimes good to come inside and rest the eyes and get readjusted. I can recall living in Pennsylvania and in the wintertime coming in and not able to see for a few seconds due to "snow-blindness".  My eyes would need time to "readjust" to the interior of the house before I could go and do other things. The need to wait was necessary.

Whenever we turn to Jesus' words in Luke 24:49, the instruction carries with it the command to stay in the city until the Lord clothes them with power from on high.  The disciples had experienced "much light" so to speak in regards to insight and instruction from Jesus. Acts 1:3 states Jesus had appeared for a period of 40 days to these men, instructing them about the Kingdom of God and showing them convincing proofs that He was alive.  In addition, upon His first appearance to them He had breathed upon them the Holy Spirit to prepare them for such a "download" of profound insight.  

They had experienced the Son in the glory of unglorified, pre-cross, pre-ressurection incarnated humanity (they of course got a sneak peak of His Divine majesty on the Mount of Transfiguration). For over 3 years they walked with the Son as God in human flesh.  But now Jesus was coming to them, but now He was God not just in human flesh, but God in post-resurrected humanity. What they thought they knew about Jesus was not only going to be added to, but enhanced.  This was their encounter with the post-resurrected, pre-pentecost Jesus.

The time had come for Jesus to ascend back into heaven. Undoubtedly reeling from what had been five weeks of intense experience (the crucifixion, the burial, the resurrection and subsequent appearances), the disciples needed time to process - and to wait on God. 

Oftentimes when we focus on Jesus' final words to His disciples, many will refer to the Great Commission of Matthew 28:18-20 - and certainly that is a very important command. But very few focus on this instruction - the need to wait on the Lord before proceeding any further. Why did Jesus have these disciples to wait in Jerusalem? Today's post aims to begin unpacking this significant instruction from Jesus to His apostles, and why waiting on the Lord is so important for you and I today.

Waiting on God is very important in the scriptures
As one begins to survey the Bible, it is very clear that God often had seasons of waiting in His people's lives as evidenced by the emphasis He placed on waiting. Psalm 27:14 
"Wait for the Lord;Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord." Or consider Hosea 12:6 "Therefore, return to your God,Observe kindness and justice, And wait for your God continually." As the saints of God grew in their faith, over time they learned the benefits of waiting upon the Lord. Isaiah 40:31 is perhaps among the most familiar passages on waiting: "Yet those who wait for the Lord Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary."  Certainly by the time we arrive at the New Testament, we find Simeon in a posture of waiting in Luke 2:25 "And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him." Undoubtedly the concept of waiting upon the Lord is vitally important in God's Word. So then what of Jesus' instructions to His disciples to wait until the Holy Spirit should come upon them?

Jesus instruction to wait in Luke and Acts
The sequence of events that took place from the time of Jesus' resurrection until His ascension entailed much activity. We read in John 20:22 that upon Jesus second post-resurrection appearance to His disciples on the Easter Sunday evening (the first being to Mary Magdalene), He breathed upon them the Holy Spirit.  Jesus did that to prepare them for what would be an intense 40 day period of illumination, proclamation and final instruction. According to the NIV Harmony of the Gospels, Jesus made no less than ten post-resurrection appearances to his disciples and followers. The grace and power that came with Jesus' outbreathing of the Holy Spirit upon His disciples was for that 40 day period.  

In the chronology of Luke's Gospel and the Book of Acts, it appears that Jesus' instructions in Luke 24:49 for the disciples to wait could be followed by the words we see written in Acts 1:1-8.  Being that Acts is the sequel to Luke's Gospel, Luke is doing a quick review for Theophilus from whence he ended. Thus after the events of Acts 1:1-8, both the events of Luke 24:50-53 and Acts 1:9-11 parallel quite nicely with one another. 

Between the time Jesus ascended in Luke 24:50-53 and Acts 1:9-11 until the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2 is 10 days.  That timeframe was to be the specific time of waiting to which Jesus was referring.  Both sets of verses in Luke and Acts give us a couple of reasons as to why Jesus had these disciples to wait.

1). Wait for reception of the Father's promise. 
Luke 24:49a states - "And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you....".  Acts 1:4 notes - "Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised,“Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me."  Jesus of course is referring back to what He had spoken to his disciples in the upper room on the eve of His crucifixion about the Holy Spirit in John 14:16; 15:26-27 and 16:7.

2). Wait for empowerment from the Holy Spirit.
Luke 24:49b "but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
Acts 1:8a defines this Power "but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you."

3). Wait so as to minister the message about the Son to all people. 
Acts 1:8b "and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

Unpacking Jesus' instruction to wait on God
Now notice the three main purposes of waiting as gleaned from our observations in Luke 24:49 and Acts 1:1-11: reception, empowerment and then ministry. 

These men needed to wait in order to receive from God before they could give to men what God had told them.  Unless I have something in my hand to give and something in my heart to tell you, I won't have anything to give or tell. John the Baptist said in John 3:27  "John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven." For 40 days they had been receiving instruction, shown further evidences of Jesus' post-resurrection power and were encountered by Jesus Himself on ten different occasions.  Imagine trying to process all of those events! Furthermore, the task these men had ahead of them far outweighed all the previous 40 days and 3 years of their time with Jesus combined.  They needed to be yielded to the Father in a posture of waiting to demonstrate they could remain yielded to the Father's will in their process of going.  Their prior time with Jesus was like a sprint.  The upcoming 30 years that would follow in the Book of Acts was going to be a marathon. 

Perhaps you reading this have been sprinting for the Lord in your church, your job, your family and in your life. God has something up ahead He would have you to do.  You know so much about Him, but do you know Him?  You know how to do for Him, but have you cultivated the much needed discipline of waiting upon Him? To realize that He is the Promising God who deals with us in covenant relationship prevents us from developing an aloofness to His Presence in our lives.  We are often so busy being Marthas that we fail to be Marys. (John 11) There will be those times of course where we have to be a Martha, and of course it was to Martha that Jesus gave the insight about He being the resurrection and the Life in John 11:25. Nonetheless we need to be sure not to neglect waiting upon God, otherwise we won't be in the position to receive what He has and Who He is.

More tomorrow....

Endnotes:

1. Oswald Chambers. My Utmost for His Highest. January 19th reading. 

P3 The Holy Spirit - The Strengthening Comforter

Acts 9:31 "So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up; and going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it continued to increase."

Introduction & Review
Over the past couple of days we have been studying the important ministry of the Holy Spirit as the Strengthening Comforter.  We have explored major sections of scripture: from the Old Testament through Jesus' promises to statements in the Epistles regarding how the Spirit's Strengthening Comfort as the Paraclete or Advocate applies to believers today.  In this final post of the series we aim to offer a brief exposition of Acts 9:23-43 which features the early church moving forward under what is described in Acts 9:31 as "the comfort of the Holy Spirit". Without the Holy Spirit's strengthening comfort in either the individual Christian life or corporate church life, no ministry and no activity can be done. 

Seeing what happens when the Mighty Comforter, the Holy Spirit, is at work in the church

Notice the following outcomes in the early church that are attributed to the Holy Spirit's comforting ministry:

a. Peace comes as a result of the Spirit's strengthening comfort. Acts 9:23-31 "So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace....".

When you read Acts 9:23-31, the scene is three years following Paul's mighty conversion. So why was the church enjoying such peace?  We could say that in part it might had been due to Paul's conversion and the cessation of his persecuting activity as a result of his conversion.  Though one could make such an argument, it does not explain why the church as a whole was enjoying peace and growth, especially since the Jews would had opportunity to had replaced a person like Paul.  Further reading in Acts 9:23-30 suggests that the Jews had a price on Paul's head, prompting Paul's new found friends to aid in his escape from their hands. 

Other commentators have pointed out various political changes that were occuring that caused the focus to be taken off of the church and placed on the Jews themselves.  Again we could certainly entertain such a possibility, but that would not explain why the church was thriving and growing in the ultimate sense. 

After Luke explains the beginnings of Paul's ministry, we discover the true cause of the peace enjoyed by the church - the strengthening comfort of the Holy. Undoubtedly through the preaching of the Gospel by Paul the Spirit gave favor throughout all of the regions in which the church existed. The Spirit's ability to strengthen and energize His church includes giving her favor in the area she ministers. Certainly peace is one of the fruits of the Spirit's strenghening comfort - whether it be in the church as a whole or the Christian's individual walk in particular.

b. Building up of the church results from the Spirit's strengthening comfort. Acts 9:31 "being built up....".
As the Holy Spirit functions as our Advocate, or Comforter, our Helper - we can see a progression of results.  First there is that initial peace, followed by a building up. In the remainder of Acts 9 we find both the ministries of the Apostles Paul (9:23-30) and Peter (9:32-43) flourishing. The Word of God is being proclaimed, miracles are being performed and people are getting saved.  Clearly as the Spirit of God has His way in a church and in our lives, the state of the Christian faith will experience a strengthening, a reinforcing.  Only the Spirit of God in His ministry of Strengthening comfort can bring about such results. 

c. Fear of the Lord results from the Spirit's strengthening comfort. Acts 9:31 "and going on in the fear of the Lord." 
This "fear of God" speaks of a deep reverence and desperate dependance upon God, fearing what life and ministry would be like if He were to remove His hand or if we were to do anything to provoke His Fatherly discipline. As Christians, we fear the Lord as we come to recognize more and more that our very lives - both spiritual and physical - depends upon Him. Without this trait - Christianity cannot expect to endure and have any effect in our world. (compare Acts 19:17)

These first few statements describe for us the effects that were taking place in the life of the church as a result of the Spirit's work as the Great Comforter.  He is the One who "comes alongside" and Strengthens the church to do the bidding of the Lord. As He works in and among and through the church, Acts 9:31 then describes how the Spirit's comforting work affected the outcomes of peace, strengthening and fear of the Lord - namely by how the church continued to increase.  

d. The church increased in influence as a result of the Spirit's strengthening comfort. Acts 9:31-43
As you consider the two miracles performed through Peter by the power of the risen Christ, that power is transmitted by the Holy Spirit working through Him.  Both the healing of the lameness of the Aeneas in 9:32-34 and the raising of the little servant girl Tabitha in 9:35-43 are attributed to the Living Christ both directly (9:34) and indirectly. Both miracles resulted in people being converted and turning to the Lord. (Acts 9:35 and 9:42) The reader must understand that these two miracles follow from what was just said in Acts 9:31 of the Spirit's comforting ministry bringing about the mighty increase of the church.  No doubt Peter's success and miracles can be included in Luke's words. Truly the mark of the Spirit's working is to point the way to Jesus - which of course Peter does.  Furthermore, the miracles themselves resemble ones Jesus did in His ministry - further validating the Spirit's task of ever making the church to act, talk and think more like Jesus.1  

Conclusions:
As we draw this study to a close, it is the hope of this writer that the reader has been encouraged and illumined to all that the Holy Spirit does as the Strengthening Comforter.  Undoubtedly without the Spirit of God and the power he brings to us by the scriptures, the risen and exalted Christ and the grace of the Father, we truly could not function - let alone thrive. He is our advocate here on earth Who works in and through us - enabling us to run the race set for us by the Master. May you and I dear reader rely upon the strengthening comfort of the Spirit while finding our confidence in our perfect Redeemer - Jesus Christ. 

Endnotes:
1. Amazingly the two miracles are "Jesus-like" miracles, being that the healing of the lame man in Acts 9:32-35 reminds the reader of Jesus' healing of the man on the stretcher in Luke 5:18,24 and the raising of Tabitha in Acts 9:36-43 reminds the reader of Jesus' raising of Jarius' daughter in Matthew 9:18-26 & Luke 8:49-56. 

P2 The Holy Spirit - The Strengthening Comforter

Acts 9:31 "So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up; and going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it continued to increase."

Introduction & Review:

Yesterday we began consider how the Holy Spirit is the Comforting Strengthener in the life of His people and the church.  Starting with what the Old Testament has to teach on this Divine title of God as "Helper" or "Comforter", we moved then to Jesus' teaching on this important title.  In John 14-16 we see Jesus ascribing this Divine title indirectly to Himself and directly to the Person of the Holy Spirit. We discovered that in the New Testament's usage of the word "paraclete", the Holy Spirit (and Jesus as well) are both assigned the same title that God the Father had in the Old Testament as the Helper, Comforter or Strengthener of His people.  We also considered why our English translations retain the term "Comforter", and how that word refers to the Strengthening and "Coming alongside" ministry of the Holy Spirit in the Christian life.   We ended yesterday in Acts 9:31, noting how the Holy Spirit in particular strengthens His church in His comforting ministry by way of building up, working forth fear of God and strengthening His people in the calling He issues forth to them.  

In today's post we aim to continue this series on the Holy Spirit - the Strengthening Comforter, by noting how the remainder of the New Testament beyond the Book of Acts develops this truth.  It is hoped that you will discover what God's Word has to say, and in the process learn what the Bible truly means by the Spirit's comforting ministry.

The Holy Spirit's Strengthening Comfort in the New Testament Epistles
It is important for the reader to recall how the New Testament is structured in terms of its main divisions: The Gospels present Christ and His achievement; Acts preaches about Christ and His achievement; Epistles explain Christ and His achievement; Revelation portrays Christ as exalted and victoriously returning due to His achievements. Without a doubt the Promise of the Holy Spirit in the Gospels is the reason why we see the Power and Person of the Holy Spirit presented and explained throughout Acts and the Epistles. Jesus promised the Holy Spirit as the Strengthening Comforter in John 14:16; 15:26-27 and 16:7. We saw yesterday specific reference to the Spirit's Strengthening Comfort in Acts 9:31. So now the question is: so what? What bearing does this particular ministry of the Holy Spirit have on your Christian life in today's world.  This is where some statements from the Epistles aid in the reader's understanding. 

Consider for example Romans 15:13-14 "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. 14 Now I myself am confident concerning you, my brethren, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another." What passages such as these do is to put flesh and life on what would be an otherwise abstract concept.  In context the Apostle Paul is connecting this important ministry of the Holy Spirit to what he noted earlier in Romans 15:4 "For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope."  How often have you found exactly what you needed in your weakest moment through a passage of scripture? You can thank the Holy Spirit - the strengthening comforter. 

Further reflection on this text in Romans unfolds what it looks like in the life of a person who is regularly benefting from the Strengthening Comforter. Such a person is full of hope, joy and is able to admonish or encourage their fellow believer onto love and good deeds.  All of these activities can only occur as a result of the strenghtening comfort of the Holy Spirit.  

Galatians 5:22-23 states - "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law." Whenever you survey all of the passages in both Testaments that speak of God's strengthening comfort in the lives of these people, oftentimes these fruits will be found in some measure.  These fruits or behaviors will come to characterize the Christian who is regularly proceeding in the strengthening comfort of the Holy Spirit.

One final passage that we will briefly mention in today's post - 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 "Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, 17 comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work." The underlined word in the passage is the same word used by Jesus back in John 14:16; 15:26-27 and 16:7 to describe God's divine "coming alongside" ministry of strengthening.  Even though the Person in focus in the passage is the Father, we can readily say with everything discovered thus far in this study that the Father does this comforting by way of the Person and Agency of the Holy Spirit. The Three Persons of the Trinity, though to be distinguished, yet ever work together as One God for the sake of the Trinity's glory and completion of every believer's salvation. 

Life applications - drawing everything together we have learned thus far
We have explored the scriptures concerning the Holy Spirit - the strengthening comforter.  It should help the reader to realize that no matter what the circumstance, the Holy Spirit's ability to strengthen and come alongside the people of God knows no limit.  Theologian Michael Horton says concerning this ministry of the Holy Spirit: "The Spirit mediates Christ's royal ministry by subduing unbelief and the tyranny  of sin, giving sinners the faith that unites them to Christ so that they can receive all His heavenly gifts.  The ascended Christ gives, and the Spirit equips ministers and elders as His undershepherds (Eph 4:11-16).1 No fear, no situation, no challenge is too great for the child of God to handle who is relying upon the Paraclete - the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit, in His strengthening comfort, points us to our Heavenly Strengthener, Advocate, the Lord Jesus Christ. (1 John 2:1) We also know that in understanding this important work of the Spirit, the Christian has hope where there is hopelessness and joy in the face of despair.  The aim of this short series is to introduce the reader to the wonderful strengthening comforter - the Holy Spirit. May you and I avail ourselves of His desire to strengthen us for the journey to being more and more like Jesus in this life and in preparing for the world to come. 

More tomorrow.....

Endnotes:
1. Michael Horton. The Christian Faith. Zondervan. 2011. Page 560