I love Jesus’ disciples. They are so human! Whenever I wonder what I can do, an old woman, I remember what those men did—they turned the world around in one generation through the power of the Holy Spirit within them. Still, they were very ordinary men, often knuckleheaded and sometimes dense.
Jesus had just told them to wait in Jerusalem until the Father sends the Holy Spirit as He promised. And what are the next words out of their mouths? “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?” [Acts 1:6 NLT]
Despite everything that had happened, they were still looking for Jesus to oust the Romans from their land, they wanted their earthly kingdom and they wanted it now. Jesus had a different promise and a work for them …
“The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” [Acts 1:7-8 NLT]
I love the promise – “You will receive power” and I love the work – “You will be my witnesses.”
There was no equivocation in Jesus’ promise. You will receive the power of the Holy Spirit, not you might, or you could. There was no “maybe” in His declaration. Power would be theirs when the Holy Spirit descended upon them on Pentecost. And that power would energize their work to be Jesus’ witnesses.