Backdraft

“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.””
‭‭Acts‬ ‭1:8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

“When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
‭‭Acts‬ ‭2:1-4‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Backdraft

On this day, nearly two thousand years ago, the church of Jesus Christ was born. It started humbly with a disparate collection of saints in the upper room, awaiting the coming of the promise the Lord Jesus had made.

“And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.””
Acts 1:4-5 NKJV

They waited, prayed in one accord and ministered to one another. Upon the appointed the time the promise was fulfilled and they received the Holy Spirit. We who are the spiritual descendants of those in the upper room, have benefitted from the gifts we have gone on to share the message of the Good News.

We have been given a fire to carry from generation to generation, as if passing a torch. Along the way, as is inevitable, the torch has grown dim, with the glow of its flame almost imperceptible at times, as people charged with minding the fire, have turned their attention to other things, more worldly in nature.

In these latter days, it can seem as if there is no flame at all. Like a fire in a room with no oxygen, the flames have dimmed and seem suppressed. In a spiritual sense, it seems as if the passion for the Gospel has been extinguished.

But we know the Lord is always working, always moving in the hearts of those He will save. Though what He is doing can seem imperceptible at times, there is still great power. It simply needs a little air.

Brothers and sisters, let us go and tell, the breath of our lungs, breathing forth the Gospel into a sick and dying world. May the air we breath add fuel to the fire. May it be like a backdraft, stirring up the almost dead embers of the Good News, stirring them once again into a raging inferno.

May this day of Pentecost be a sign to us, to be diligent and deliberate to go and share the Gospel as if we will never have another opportunity like this ever again. Ask the Lord for a the power to go and share, for the willingness to be exposed as we seek to bring the holy things of God to a sinful world in the grips of the evil one.

I am proud of my little church! We have evangelism training every week to equip the saints to go and share. There are so many stories of the shy and humble, taking those steps of faith and sharing tracts, witnessing and telling of what Jesus has done.

We are like those early believers, as we face a world that does not want to hear from us and does not understand us, nor the message we bring. May we be a people who calls out to Jesus for boldness and power, that we keep up the work. Some of us may be persecuted, and some even jailed. May we press on, calling out to God.

“And being let go, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them, who by the mouth of Your servant David have said: ‘Why did the nations rage, And the people plot vain things? The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the Lord and against His Christ.’”
Acts 4:23-26 NKJV

“And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.”
Acts 4:31 NKJV

Lord, shake our churches, and shake even more, our hearts, that we be made alert to your presence and your power. Fill us with your Holy Spirit, that we go forth and speak the word of God with boldness. May the fire be alit and burn brightly once again. Amen.

Have a glorious Day of Pentecost!

#prayfortheharvest

#praythathegospelgothroughouttheworld

https://www.allaboutgod.com/the-roman-road.htm