Part 3: Power to Proclaim

28 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. 29 Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit. 30 “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. 31 The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. 32 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the Lord has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.

1) THE HOLY SPIRIT IMPACTS GOD’S PEOPLE

Acts 2:1–4 ESV

1 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

The people were all together, continuing in their praying (Acts 1:14).

Imagery of God’s divine and empowering presence.

Wind

John 3:5–8 ESV

5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

Fire

When fire touches something, there is a noticeable change.

“...filled the entire house...” “…filled with the Holy Spirit...”

The idea here is that everyone in that place was undoubtedly impacted by God’s presence and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

God’s promised Holy Spirit empowered the people to speak.

Some say a heavenly language…some say an earthly language uncommon to the men…neither should be the focus…The focus is the Holy Spirit!

After several days of God’s people uniting in prayer and being obedient to Christ, they were noticeably impacted and overcome by the power of the Holy Spirit.

2) THE HOLY SPIRIT INTERESTS THOSE AROUND US

Acts 2:5–13 ESV

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”

People from all walks of life were curious as to what was happening.

God’s people were speaking to them and they were understanding in their own languages.

Sometimes we wonder how we are supposed to reach people with the Gospel who are not like us in our own communities (it’s okay when it’s on the other side of the globe, but here?). The answer is that we don’t…the Holy Spirit does through us!

Some mocked… Some Questioned… but their interest was sparked.

When we are obedient to Christ and the Holy Spirit fills our lives, it will interest those around us, even from different backgrounds and personal cultures. When that happens, we need to continue in obedience and proclaim the message of God.

3) THE HOLY SPIRIT INFLUENCES OUR SPEECH

Acts 2:14–21 ESV

14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: 17 “ ‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. 21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

What do we proclaim…Clarification through God’s Word!

A call to salvation, hope, and life!

When you’re not sure what to say to your coworkers, your family members, your friends, your neighbors, or the person you’ve encountered at the gas station…Let the Holy Spirit speak through you, proclaiming God’s Word and His hope for life and salvation!

Luke 12:12 ESV

12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

Most people do not share their faith because they are too scared…either of rejection or that they don’t know what to say, but God’s Word says to us...

2 Timothy 1:6–8 ESV

6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, 7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 8 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God,

CLOSING

As the Kingdom of God in your heart Collides with the kingdom of lostness around you, the key to proclaiming your faith is not your ability, but your availability!

WILL YOU SEEK GOD IN HIS WORD, ALLOW HIM TO SHAPE YOUR HEART BY PRAYER, AND BE TOGETHER WITH HIS PEOPLE?

That is when you find the power to proclaim hope to dying world!