Receiving Power

DEVOTION

 THE BOOK OF ACTS

RECEIVING POWER

Acts 1:6-8

6 So when they met together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?" 7 He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." 

NIV

Still after seeing Jesus crucified, buried, and resurrected, alive and well, they still can only see with their human eyes. They still are thinking he is going to restore Israel, outing the Roman occupiers, overthrowing Herod and becoming the new king of Israel. Why else would they ask such a question? But Jesus answers their question with the truth for all times, all people, and all cultures. Jesus gives them an eternal answer to their human question. It is not just the disciples who have fallen into the human way of thinking, but mankind throughout the ages has been trying to determine when Jesus will restore his kingdom, when he will return as the King of kings, the conquering King. Predictions of dates of his return have always been around, and yet none of those who predict know the truth of the words Jesus spoke here. It is not for us to know the times or the dates the Father has set by his own authority. The Father has set a time and date when Jesus will restore his kingdom and it is the Father who is the only one who knows that time and date. The only concern we should have concerning that date is that we are among the ones who belong to Jesus when that date arrives. But what we should be doing in the meantime is entirely a different story. First we must wait, but just a couple of days at most, as we already know, but when the Holy Spirit does come upon us, we will receive power. This power is not for the purpose of our own edification or our own benefit in any way, but it is for a designated purpose. The purpose of this power is so that we will be witnesses to the ends of the earth. This was not just for those disciples as they could not have possibly traveled to the ends of the earth; they never left the Middle East. But all believers are at the ends of the earth and all believers can have this power of the Holy Spirit and all believers can be witnesses for Jesus. But to be a witness we must leave the confines of the walls of the church buildings and we must travel among the people who have yet to hear the truth about Jesus. We must tell them the story, tell them what we have seen, what we have heard, what we have experienced. We cannot do this in the power of human abilities, human strength or intelligence, but only in the power of the Holy Spirit as he comes upon us. We must be receiving the power.