Preaching the Word

And Saul approved of his execution.

And there arose a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the disciples.

But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.

Now those who were scattered went about PREACHING THE WORD.

Act 8:1,3-4

What an amazing passage! The whole book of Acts is an incredible story of men and women living in the power of the Holy Spirit. These three verses at the beginning of chapter eight are so rich.

First there is Saul. One of the most well known persecutors and  haters of the man Jesus and his followers would later became one the most passionate servants of Jesus Christ. How? Paul walking in and claiming the power of the Holy Spirit. What a testimony! God can save even the most wretched of sinners. He loves us and pursues us even when we are against Him.

Second, there are the disciples. When the persecution began, people ran. It was a matter of safety and so for the families it was safer to get out of the city. The disciples stayed. Despite the threat of being thrown in prison and death, they remained in the city. They were obedient to where God had called them to be. Later the disciples would spread out to different regions around the area but for now God called them to stay put and that is exactly what they did. They knew the consequences of staying but because they were walking in the Spirit they were able to be obedient.

I think sometimes that we are afraid to go where Jesus tells us to go because of a fear of man. What he calls us to may look a lot different than what some people think it should look. In the Christian community even people are looked down upon if they do what has never been done before or discouraged from doing things in a different way than before. We can be judgmental as a church sometimes. God has called me to write. Another person may not look at writing as a tool that God can use to bring Him glory. The creative arts are often given a bad reputation in the Christian community because it goes against the norm of society. What place needs more Christians than theater, music, art, and the writing world. God gave us creative minds. Just think about all the creativity it took to create the world. And what did he leave us with, His written word. Jesus used stories and parables to preach to the people. We are told repeatedly to sing and praise him with instruments.

We were created to be creative. He gave us imaginations and talents to use. What if God is calling someone to go into acting or music? As a Christian community we should come around them with support and encouragement not judgement. I want my children and the people around me to not be afraid to go wherever it is God is calling them and use the talents and gifts that God has given them. I want them to be bold for the cause of Jesus Christ, even if it may not look like what He has called me to. I have spent too many years not writing and acting and singing because of what other people would think of me. It is time to step out and do what God has been calling me to.

A. W. Tozer writes, " There are times when to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit we must walk alone, which goes contrary to our natural inclination. Sometimes we must walk away from the crowd, even the Christian crowd." Another quote of his says, " We are not to look like or act like other people; rather, we are to look like Christ. We are to do the things that Christ would do in the power and demonstration of the Holy Spirit."

Stepping off my soapbox now.

Where was I?

Well, this kind of applies to the previous paragraph. The third thing is the fact that even during a horrible persecution where many were tortured, thrown into prison, and killed, they were

still PREACHING THE WORD! Saul went after the Christians to stop them so much so that they fled the city and their homes. They had to flee. And yet, Saul could not contain the power of the Holy Spirit in these Christians. He could not contain the joy talked about in verse 8. 

So there was much joy in that city.

Acts 8:8

Despite being under threat of prison and death they could not do anything but preach and share about Jesus. THAT is the power of the Holy Spirit. The fear of death and harm and persecution could not stem the Holy Spirit. It makes me wonder if the American church has not or is not truly walking in the power of the Holy Spirit. It seems we are too afraid to stand up for Jesus. Walking in our own strength we will fail. But walking in the power of the Holy Spirit is a game changer. What if we truly started walking in the strength and power of the Holy Spirit? What if a whole generation stood together with the Holy Spirit's power to proclaim the name of JESUS and bring glory to HIS name? Our towns and cities would be forever changed. Our nation, our world would be different because we would, like the New Testament church, be PREACHING THE WORD! Revival!

What an amazing thing that would be. Maybe it starts with me. What if I did this? What if I walked in the power of the Holy Spirit? For one thing, my family would change. There would be more soldiers to preach the word of God because my eight children would see me doing it and be trained to walk in the Spirit and then hopefully follow my example. That is where this all begins. With moms and dads training and teaching and modeling what walking in the power of the Holy Spirit looks like. With older men and women training the younger generation. Whether single or married, young or old, with children or without. With families and individuals truly not just believing in Jesus but being one of his disciples and following Christ no matter what the cost.

This is the desire for my life and my family.

I wonder who will join me?