The Holy Spirit Comes With Power

The Holy Spirit Comes with Power

Jesus would not let his followers begin their ministries unless they knew the Holy Spirit. By this point the disciples had spent three years in training. They had seen the empty tomb, they had touched his resurrected body, they had spent forty days listening to the resurrected Christ teach about the kingdom. But they needed more. Jesus told them, “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

The Holy Spirit comes with power. Power to make good choices, to keep promises, to silence the inner voices of fear and failure. Power to get busy about the right things in the right way. Power. This is what Jesus promised then, and this is what Jesus promises still.

Devotion by Max Lucado | The Almighty Jehovah | https://thealmightyJehovah.com

He has Been There

Most families keep their family secrets a secret. Some stories remain unmentioned at the family reunion and unrecorded in the family Bible. That is, unless you’re Jesus. He displayed the bad apples of his family tree in the first chapter of the New Testament. Rahab was a Jericho harlot. David was one day writing psalms, another day seducing his captain’s wife. But did Jesus erase their names from the list? Not at all!

If your family tree has bruised fruit, Jesus wants you to know, “I’ve been there.” The phrase “I’ve been there” is in the chorus of Christ’s theme song. To the lonely, he whispers “I’ve been there. To the discouraged, Christ nods his head and sighs, “I’ve been there.” When you turn to him for help, he runs to you to help. He’s been there!

Untying Knots

Most of us had a hard time learning to tie our shoes. Tightening shoes by wrapping strings together? Nothing easy about that. Who came up with the idea of shoes anyway?

My friend Roy used to sit on a park bench watching kids gather and play at the bus stop. One day a little fellow struggled to board the bus, frantically trying to disentangle a knotted shoestring. He grew more anxious by the moment. All of a sudden it was too late. The bus door closed. With tear-filled eyes he looked at Roy on the bench and asked, “Do you untie knots?”

We never outgrow the urge to look up and say, “Help!” And when we do, who shows up? Jesus, our next-door Savior. Go ahead, ask him: “Do you untie knots?” “Yes,” he will say.