Evidence

DEVOTION

THE BOOK OF ACTS

EVIDENCE

Acts 10:44-46

44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. 45 The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. 46 For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.

NIV

It is obvious when the Holy Spirit comes upon people something will happen in their lives. Here we see Peter telling them about the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus and even before he is completely finished with the story, the Holy Spirit decides to make his move and filled all the uncircumcised gentiles. At that very moment something wonderful happened as they all began to speak in tongues, or other languages. Now we do not know exactly what kind of languages as it is not recorded for us as it was when the disciples poured out into the streets of Jerusalem speaking in tongues, or other languages, but the fact is they were speaking a language they had not learned and they we praising God. So far whenever we have seen people filled with the Spirit they have been speaking other languages and what they have been saying is praises to God. Of course the Jewish believers who came along with Peter were astonished because they had not seen the same vision Peter had nor had they been spoken to by the angel of the Lord. The point here, the life lesson here is that with the filling of the Spirit something will happen. Today there are believers who speak in other languages as a result of being filled with the Spirit as we see in the early church. We also have believers today who refuse to accept this as a result of being filled with the Spirit. In fact, some are even so sure it is not for today they accuse those who speak in tongues as being led or deceived by Satan. Yet the fact remains when we are filled by the Spirit something will happen in our lives, there will be some kind of evidence of being filled with the Spirit. It is one thing to simply say we believe in Jesus Christ, there is entirely a different thing when we have some evidence in our life of being filled with Spirit. Some say we cannot be just saved but that when we accept Jesus the Spirit comes too. But we know that is not true because we have seen people believe and then be filled with the Spirit and when they are filled they have some evidence of that filling. Whatever the evidence is it remains a fact there is evidence. If we do not see some evidence we might well conclude there is no infilling of the Spirit. That might sound a little judgmental but it is a fact. Believers in Christ who have been filled with Spirit will have evidence of that event in their lives. We need to make sure we have the evidence.