Day 21 - Batteries Included

The Spirit gives us the power to witness for God to the ends of the earth. He equips us with the strength we need to accomplish God’s purposes.

How many Christmas Eves have you stayed up putting toys together, only to find out at the very end that the batteries needed were not included? Or you get your child just the toy they want, but you don’t notice that the package says in very tiny print that the batteries needed are not included? How maddening!

There is an amazing two-volume set in our New Testament written by a doctor named Luke. His first volume is His Gospel, an account of the Life and ministry of Jesus. The second volume, Acts, is the story of the early church and its growth throughout the Roman Empire. Luke begins Acts where he left off in his gospel—at the Ascension of Jesus. Take a moment and read Acts 1:1-11.

During the years of Jesus’ ministry on earth, the disciples continually wondered about His kingdom. When would it come? What would their role be? In the traditional view, the Messiah would be an earthly conqueror who would free Israel from Rome. But the kingdom Jesus spoke about was first of all a spiritual kingdom established in the hearts and lives of believers. God’s presence and power dwell in believers in the person of the Holy Spirit.

I am grateful that the power of the Holy Spirit is not dependent on something as earthly as batteries. That’s an oversimplification, but you can follow my meaning. How would the early disciples have even considered fulfilling Jesus’ missional command to take the gospel throughout the world if Jesus had not promised to provide the energy and the power?

Sailors depend on the wind to fill their sails and move them along. We depend on the breath of God to fill our sails and move us along. We must put ourselves in the path of the Holy Spirit in order to catch a full sail of wind. The Spirit gives us the power we need in order to be witnesses for God everywhere. He has given us everything we need in order to accomplish God’s purposes. This being true, we may be facing a dilemma:

1. We carry the gospel to the world until we run out of strength.

2. We don’t carry the gospel to the world.

3. We fill our sails with God’s power—the Holy Spirit!

This leaves me without any excuses. Does it leave you without excuses?

What excuses have you been using that have limited your power to witness for God?