January 1, 2025 BEGAN TO SPEAK
Acts 4:31 “And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak the word of God with boldness.”
There are varying opinions concerning the evidence of being filled with the Spirit. But as you read through the New Testament, the unmistakable evidence of being filled with the Spirit is boldness. Some believe that speaking in tongues is the sign of being filled with the Spirit. It is clear from scripture that speaking in tongues is something that is ligit; however, Paul makes it clear that all do not speak in tongues and he also makes it clear that when spoken in a gathering of believers, there must be someone to interpret. From the verses above, we see once again the importance of and the power of prayer. Believers has gathered together-that’s important. God is blessed when His people gather to offer prayers to Him. Just as the early believers had a lot going on in their world, so so we; and we need the guidance, the empowerment, and the wisdom that God gives when we pray in faith. It’s another subject, but many believe that it’s one thing to receive the Spirit at salvation and another thing to be filled with the Spirit-that could be discussed for a long time. But here is one thing for sure; we have the power to walk according to the flesh or to walk according to the Spirit. When we die to ourselves, when we turn from our ways and yield ourselves totally to God, His Spirit fills us. There is some mystery regarding the filling of the Spirit; we can be walking according to the Spirit and enjoying our relationship with God, but at times the Spirit moves in powerful ways and speaks to us very clearly and directly. I am saying that we cannot put the Holy Spirit in a box. The key points for us are to hunger for God, seek Him first, read and study His word to know Him better and to learn who we are in Him, to receive His word, and to act out or obey what He says. Let us understand and let us know in our spirit that boldness is a result of being filled with the Spirit. We do not have to try to work up boldness-it’s a result of being filled with the Spirit. Being afraid of offending others can cause us not to be bold in sharing the gospel. Certainly we do not want to offend others, but being bold in our faith-however that looks-takes precedent. We are the people of God and His ambassadors who have the Spirit of God living in us; let us be given to prayer and let us keep being filled with the Spirit, and be those who are bold in Christ.
Proverbs 28:1 “The righteous are as bold as a lion.”
Ephesians 3:11-12 “This was in accordance with the eternal which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him.”
Blessings, Buddy. HAPPY NEW YEAR
Acts 4:31 “And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak the word of God with boldness.”
There are varying opinions concerning the evidence of being filled with the Spirit. But as you read through the New Testament, the unmistakable evidence of being filled with the Spirit is boldness. Some believe that speaking in tongues is the sign of being filled with the Spirit. It is clear from scripture that speaking in tongues is something that is ligit; however, Paul makes it clear that all do not speak in tongues and he also makes it clear that when spoken in a gathering of believers, there must be someone to interpret. From the verses above, we see once again the importance of and the power of prayer. Believers has gathered together-that’s important. God is blessed when His people gather to offer prayers to Him. Just as the early believers had a lot going on in their world, so so we; and we need the guidance, the empowerment, and the wisdom that God gives when we pray in faith. It’s another subject, but many believe that it’s one thing to receive the Spirit at salvation and another thing to be filled with the Spirit-that could be discussed for a long time. But here is one thing for sure; we have the power to walk according to the flesh or to walk according to the Spirit. When we die to ourselves, when we turn from our ways and yield ourselves totally to God, His Spirit fills us. There is some mystery regarding the filling of the Spirit; we can be walking according to the Spirit and enjoying our relationship with God, but at times the Spirit moves in powerful ways and speaks to us very clearly and directly. I am saying that we cannot put the Holy Spirit in a box. The key points for us are to hunger for God, seek Him first, read and study His word to know Him better and to learn who we are in Him, to receive His word, and to act out or obey what He says. Let us understand and let us know in our spirit that boldness is a result of being filled with the Spirit. We do not have to try to work up boldness-it’s a result of being filled with the Spirit. Being afraid of offending others can cause us not to be bold in sharing the gospel. Certainly we do not want to offend others, but being bold in our faith-however that looks-takes precedent. We are the people of God and His ambassadors who have the Spirit of God living in us; let us be given to prayer and let us keep being filled with the Spirit, and be those who are bold in Christ.
Proverbs 28:1 “The righteous are as bold as a lion.”
Ephesians 3:11-12 “This was in accordance with the eternal which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him.”
Blessings, Buddy. HAPPY NEW YEAR
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