PENTECOST

Not many of us like to wait! The idea brings up images of long queues, delayed departures, or maybe sitting uncomfortably in a hospital waiting area wondering how long it will be till your name is called. Yet waiting – while preparing, hoping, and growing in expectation are all part of the necessary process Jesus invited his followers into (Acts 1:4).

This group of disciples who had just recently been feeling bereaved and bewildered are now convinced that Jesus has indeed risen. They are being readied for an adventure beyond what they could have imagined. Jesus imparts a promise to them that they will be baptised in the Holy Spirit and receive power to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:5, 8).

We see in the opening chapters of the book of Acts four keys to this adventure:

1.      Prayer in response to the promise (1:14). Prayer focussed on this Spirit baptism that will empower them for the mission. Prayer in response to Jesus’ words, not their own ideas, and so prayer that was in one accord.

2.      A pouring out of the Holy Spirit that never runs out (2:1-4). The great river of life never runs dry though the flow may at times be blocked by our dams of unbelief, offended hearts, fear, and more.

3.      A prophetic dimension that all God’s sons and daughters are invited into (2:17-18). The prophetic ‘mantle’ is no longer limited to the Elijah’s and Elisha’s but is for us all. We all have access. We can all prophesy and be engaged with the revelation from the Spirit in dreams and visions and heavenly language.

4.      Power to heal, and to release the signs and wonders of the Kingdom of God that point to and testify of the King whose name is Jesus! This prominent theme is seen throughout Acts and must be recaptured today if we are to see the breakthrough into the dimensions of fruitfulness and multiplication that the Lord intends for us.

The Spirit has been given, yet we may need to reset ourselves that we can receive more of his fullness, and this life-giving river may increasingly flow unhindered through our lives.