Where is the demonstration of the power of G-d in our midst?
Posted : 22 Sep, 2013 07:28 PM
The power of the gospel! That is the power of the Spirit! And that is why it is so important that we welcome G-d�s Spirit in our midst, however He wants to move and whenever He wants to move.
Yes, it is absolutely true that we are called to be disciples and make disciples, and that requires day-to-day obedience in big things and little things. It requires ongoing submission to the Word of G-d and the continual conforming of our character to the image of Y-shua by the grace and help of G-d. It calls for careful and prayerful study of the Word, solid relationships with other believers and a consistent outreach to a dying world. Without these important foundations, we will not bear lasting fruit for the glory of G-d.
But this is not the whole picture, and throughout Scripture, we see G-d coming suddenly and bringing radical, dramatic change, most famously in Acts 2, when the Spirit was poured out on the 120, Peter preached his powerful message, and 3,000 Jews were added to the body in a moment of time. Nothing like that had ever happened before. Over the course of my years in the Lord, there have been times when a personal breakthrough seemed so difficult, whether it was a besetting sin that seemed so hard to resist or a step of obedience that seemed so impossible to take. And then, during a glorious worship service where the Spirit of G-d began to move in power or while praying at home alone, the Lord�s presence took hold of me in a profound way, and suddenly that sin was gone or that seemingly impossible step was taken�and it wasn�t hard at all. At other times, I have witnessed breakthroughs in public gatherings where repentance or healing were suddenly poured out and lives were instantly changed. This is what happens when the presence of G-d is manifest in our midst.
Moses understood this well, saying to the Lord, �If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?� (Ex. 33:15-16). Yes, we must love one another so the world will see Y-shua in us (John 13:35), and yes, it is by our acts of kindness and compassion that people will glorify our Father (Matt. 5:16). But that is not all. We serve a risen Lord who has ascended to heaven and poured out His Spirit, and He desires to be glorified in our midst by a demonstration of that divine power. As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, �For the kingdom of G-d is not a matter of talk but of power� (1 Cor. 4:20). And that is why, when he brought the gospel to them, he explained, �My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit�s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on G-d�s power� (1 Cor. 2:4-5).
