The former account I made, O
Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in
which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments
to the apostles whom He had chosen, to whom He also presented Himself alive
after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty
days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. (Acts 1:1-3)
In my study this week I will be preparing for a couple of messages from
the book of Acts. How is it possible to describe the dynamic work of the Holy
Spirit in the lives of believers who lived in the wake of the resurrection and
ascension of Jesus? In Acts, Luke continues his account of the power of the
Gospel in the early church. Men and women began to live out the “Great
Commission”. The book of Acts inspires and challenges me. The book of Acts
helps me understand what it means to live for Christ no matter the cost and no
matter the challenges. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, Claude Payne
and Hamilton Beazley released a book entitled “Reclaiming the Great
Commission”. Their words summarize my thoughts today:
“In a world beset by trials and tribulations, the promise of personal
transformation, which will enable one to surmount and even embrace such
difficulties, is much to be desired. Glorious transformation puts the
individual in touch with eternal spiritual values that satisfy rather than with
temporal and materialistic values that disappoint. Spiritual growth and
centering and a release from the traps of false idols are all aspects of the
glorious transformation that a life in Christ provides.”
No comments:
Post a Comment