Bible Reading: Ezra 9 & 10; Acts 1
“But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” Acts 1:8 (KJV)
The place of the Holy Spirit in evangelism can never be over emphasized. It is the Holy Spirit that empowers us for service. The power to win souls is not in our oratory capability but resides in the Holy Spirit. When we are properly empowered and equipped for witnessing for Christ God establishes our word in the field of evangelism. The Word has gone out from Christ in Mark 16:17-18 (KJV), “And this signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpent; and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” All these are to be made possible by the provision of power which comes by the anointing of the Holy Spirit.
The above scripture was fulfilled in the ministry of Apostle Paul in the Island of Melita. The bible recorded that a viper crept out of the bundle of sticks and fastened on Paul’s hand, but Paul shook off the beast into the fire without any harm. (Acts 28:3-6). The preaching of the gospel is the heart beat of God because of His inestimable love for man, hence He provides His power on the field for this purpose. The gospel field is the place for the demonstration of God’s power. To win a soul to Christ is a result of effective partnership with the Holy Spirit. We must therefore obey the above injunction of Christ, waiting on the Lord for the Holy Spirit baptism which will signal our readiness for the work of witnessing.
Preaching the gospel is actually a war. The act of witnessing is carrying the battle to the enemies’ territory, hence you need divine confirmation to proceed on this mission. The need to wait on the Lord as a Christian for the Holy Spirit baptism cannot be overemphasized. Luke 4:18(KJV) spelt out in clear terms Christ’s mission of which he commissioned us to continue with, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised”. It is the enemy that has rendered men poor, made people broken hearted, held men captives, caused both spiritual and physical blindness and bruised humanity. The enemy will not relent and easily give up on its hold on humanity except by the mighty power of God. Hence the need for empowerment which is the anointing of the Holy Ghost.
We must be properly guided in our mission as believers. Our main calling in Christ is the propagation of the gospel. We are referred to as ambassadors for Christ and every ambassador is properly empowered by their nation to function optimally in the host country. Likewise, are we empowered to function in the world, for we are in the world but not of the world. (John 17:16).
Prayer: Oh Lord empower me continuously for the work of witnessing for Christ
Bro. Joel Ezeugo