“On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: ‘Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’

Then they gathered around him and asked him, ‘Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?’

He said to them: ‘It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'” -Acts 1:4-8

Standing at the Beginning

God lovers, here we stand on the precipice of a new year, eyes wide open with expectation for the return of Jesus, just like the men of Galilee. Let’s pick up our mandate, our power, and our identity as we begin our journey through Acts!

Jesus spent 40 days with His followers, giving them proof that He was alive. He had to teach them that it was not about the political independence of Israel but the Kingdom of God being established on Earth. The means by which this Kingdom would touch Heaven to Earth would be through God lovers who wait and receive the power promised to them in the gift of the Holy Spirit. Christ Himself would come to dwell within us, and the convincing proof that He is alive would spread from the men of Galilee to the ends of the Earth. But first, they had to wait.

Understanding the Wait

According to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, the word “wait” in Greek is a combination of two words—one meaning to stay around and remain, and the other meaning to stay in a place or state of expectancy. The need to move beyond Jesus to the ends of the Earth was impossible without first waiting for the promise they had been told would come. However long they were to tarry in Jerusalem was determined by God. It was His timeline, His plan to be activated and accomplished, and His source of power that was the catalyst for their going. Can you imagine receiving all Jesus had taught and deposited in His disciples these 40 days? I am sure they were hanging onto His every word. Then, He laid the plan out for the Church and told them that they must first wait. He had to leave, and then the plan would be activated because they would be immersed (baptized) in their power source!

The Promise of Power

“‘… you will receive power …'”

There were four mentions of baptism in the Gospels, and they all referred to Jesus’ baptism. Now it’s our turn. Upon His ascension, the disciples of Jesus are baptized in the Holy Spirit. This very gift is an immersion and total saturation of power with the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:8 is the key verse for all of Acts because the purpose of our baptism is to receive power to take the gospel to the ends of the Earth and communicate Christ to people. The word “power” in Greek is dunamis, which is where we get the word “dynamite.” It is literally miraculous power, ability, strength, or force.

“’Power’ (Gk dunamis) means more than strength or ability; it refers to a power at work or in action. Luke (in his Gospel and in Acts) points out that the Holy Spirit’s power included the authority to drive out evil spirits (i.e., to command them to release their control in people’s lives) and the anointing (i.e., empowering, commissioning) to heal the sick. These were described as the two essential signs accompanying the bold message of God’s kingdom.” -“Fire Bible, Global Study Edition”

This past weekend, we had our Arise Harvest Day in Dallas. (Havest Days take place on the first Saturday of the month.) Fourteen people gathered to be trained to share the gospel, and we went out two by two to the streets of Dallas for a couple of hours to engage people. My friend and I headed to the big hospital downtown and asked the nurses if we could get into the ER waiting room to pray for people. They looked at us and assessed we weren’t crazy and miraculously let us in. The waiting room was packed with people! In the boldness of the Spirit, we went person by person and asked them how we could pray for them, prayed for their healing, and asked if they knew Jesus as their personal Savior. For those who didn’t, we told them about the radical love and saving grace of Jesus! One man named Hughie began to weep when we approached him.. He was a follower of Jesus and found himself in a very painful season of life. He didn’t know why he was there going through all of this. We looked at him and said, “Hughie, regardless of the why, you are being sent to tell people about Jesus. He is coming back soon! You can tell other patients and nurses and doctors about Jesus!” Do you the know the joy of telling people in that waiting room that Jesus is coming soon as we prayed and ministered in the power of the Spirit? It was truly living.

Our Identity as Witnesses

“‘… you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'”

At first glance, we have a roadmap for the gospel, going from the epicenter of Jerusalem to the ends of the Earth. It’s a very clear pathway for the Great Commission that we will see take place in the book of Acts. But if we look deeper, to be a witness is our very identity. Christ followers were going to be, in the future tense, witnesses or martus in Greek. This is where we get the word “martyr.” This is a witness literally, judicially or figuratively. According to the Key Word Study Bible, it is “one who testifies or can testify to the truth of what he has seen, heard, knows … . Especially of those who witnessed the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, who bear witness to the truth as it is in Jesus. … A martyr, one who by his death bears witness to the truth.”

The Call for Today

The martyrdom of believers is rapidly picking up pace all over the world. Those dying for Jesus are at the highest level in history. But I want to take the word martus to a personal level. There is a personal martyrdom of our hearts, a cutting away of the things that are not life and are not a witness of Christ to the world that must go in this hour. Jesus wants a fresh consecration of His Bride today. Many of us have lost our first love and replaced it with a second and third love that the world says is more tangible, tantalizing, and true. Lord, give us open heart surgery to cut away (circumcise) these lovers, idols, and passions for the world in order to be a witness for Christ. Just like the disciples needed proof of Jesus and His words for 40 days after the resurrection, the world is looking for proof through your life and mine that testifies to the power and presence of Christ.

A Word for This Hour

In a recent word from Dutch Sheets on January 3, he writes: “Incredible miracles will invade the earth, accompanying the gospel and the preaching of the Word. Amazing signs and wonders will occur in schools, homes, businesses, churches, arenas, bars, hospitals, on campuses and in the streets. It was in Ephesus that ‘God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul’ (Acts 19:11). Yet this was also the church warned later against a form of godliness without power and rebuked for leaving their first love, as mentioned above. Passion, presence and power go hand in hand; passion attracts God’s presence, which releases His power. Holy Spirit was challenging the ekklesia at Ephesus to do what was necessary for restoration. He is offering the same to many believers and churches in 2024.”

Are you moving in the power and identity and purposes of God as mentioned in this passage of Scripture? With all of my heart, I want to call you (and me) up and call us to the front lines of this mandate for the Church. This is our hour ,and this is our purpose. Let’s take hold of it, Church!

Closing Prayer

I will close each week with the same expectation that the men of Galilee had as they looked into the sky. It’s the cry of our hearts for Jesus to come.

“The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come!’ Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life. …

“He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’

“Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.

“The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.” -Revelation 22:17, 20-21

A Few Key Notes

• Author Karen Bejjani will lead us through the Blue Cord Study, which will train and equip you to share the gospel with Muslims and people of other faiths. Register to join us in person on Wednesday, January 24-March 6, or join us virtually on Thursdays, January 25-March 7.
• Love your neighbor and join us in sharing about Jesus during Dallas Harvest Day! We will teach you how to share the gospel and then go and evangelize together. Meet at La Victoria, 1605 N. Haskell Ave., Dallas, TX 75204, at 9 a.m. on Saturday, February 3. Tell us you’re coming by emailing [email protected].