Acts 1:1 The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, 2: Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen: 3: To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God: 4: And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. 5: For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. 6: When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? 7: And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. 8: 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 Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. 9: And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.

Introduction

We read here in Acts 1:8 the last recorded words of Jesus before He ascended up into heaven. Immediately after He spoke His last words, as His disciples were looking on, Christ was taken up, and a cloud hid him out of their sight. As I have said many times, last words are critically important, especially the last words of our Lord. These final words represent His final command to His disciples. His last command should be our first concern, don't you agree? 

But now the question is - what is our Lord's final command to His disciples? 

Acts 1:8 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 Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

The Lord's final charge to His disciples is to be His witnesses. They are to be His witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. In a criminal court case, a witness provides important information about a possible crime. Being a witness means telling the court the truth about what you know, what you heard, what you saw, what you witness. And just as the criminal justice system relies heavily on witnesses, Jesus uses faithful and credible witnesses to spread His Word and to build His church. His final command to His disciples is to go into a world where people sit in darkness; to go into a world where people are grope in darkness; to go into a world where people are ignorant of Christ and the salvation He offers. He called His disciples to give a truthful account of what their ears have heard, what their eyes have seen, what their hands have handled, what they have looked upon. He called them to boldly and faithfully testify of what they have experienced.

That was the last command to the early Church before our Lord ascended into heaven, back to the Father. And we know that these early disciples were faithful to fulfill that command.

Acts 4:19 But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. 20: For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.

1 John 1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; 2: (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) 3: That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.

This commission of being a witness for Christ is no easy task. It is an overwhelming task. It is not for fainthearted and cold-hearted.  It is a supernatural work and supernatural work must be done with supernatural strength. This is where the Holy Spirit comes in. Our Lord, before giving His disciples His last charge, He spoke these words ...

Acts 1:4 And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. 5: For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.

Our Lord instructed them to stay at Jerusalem and wait for the Holy Spirit to come before they go and carry out His great commission. Our Lord knows that fiery trials and severe oppositions were sure to come. In their own strength, they would not be able to continue to be effective witness to the Lord. They would need encouragement and comfort from the Holy Spirit to see them through.

If the first century Christians needed the Holy Spirit and His empowering ministry how much more do we need it. We need to understand and recognize that this charge of being Christ's witnesses is not exclusively only for the early church but for the church throughout the ages. 

Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

God has left us in the world to witness to the world as long as the world exists.

This morning consider with me the empowering Ministry of the Holy Spirit, in three headings, namely, the Promise of the Holy Spirit; the Presence of the Holy Spirit; and the Power of the Holy Spirit.

I - The Promise of the Holy Spirit

Acts 1:4 And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. 

You may remember, before Jesus Christ went to the cross He promised His disciples that He will not leave them orphans. He promised them that He will send the Holy Spirit as their Comforter - the Paraclete walking alongside them. Here we see our Lord repeating and confirming that promise in verses 5-8. 

Acts 1:5 For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. 6: When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? 7: And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. 8: 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 Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

This is why the Holy Spirit is called the Holy Spirit of promise.

Ephesians 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

The Spirit is called the Spirit of promise because he is the Spirit promised. He is the Spirit whom the Father and Jesus Christ had promised, and who was sent by them. He is the Spirit promised both in the Old and New Testaments.

Ezekiel 36:26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 27: And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

John 7:38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. 39: (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

Luke 24:49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

The great promise of the Father was that He would send His Spirit into the hearts of men. This promise is worth waiting for as we shall see in a moment.

II - The Presence of the Holy Spirit

Acts 1:8 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 Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

The Lord promised to send the Holy Spirt and He kept that promise. The Comforter has come! He came to convict the world of sin, and righteousness and judgment. He came to indwell, to assure, to illumine, to sanctify and to empower all those who have been born of the Spirit.

The Comforter has come! 

The Comforter has come!

The Holy Ghost from heav'n, 

The Father's promise giv'n,

O spread the tidings 'round, 

Wherever man is found:

The Comforter has come!

He has come and His presence is closer than any family, friend, or fellowman can give. Christ tells His disciples that through the Holy Spirit He will be with them "unto the most uttermost part of the earth." He gives you His promise that He will not fail, nor falter, nor forsake you in whatever you are going through today! 

Matthew 28:19 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

III - The Power of the Holy Spirit

The fulfillment of the promise brings power with it.

Acts 1:8 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 Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

The world is filled with people who are fascinated and obsessed with power. They are so obsessed with power that they will have it at any cost, even if it means controlling, exploring, and manipulating people. There are people who will live and die for monetary power, for political power, and for military power. While many devote their lives to achieving this goal, this type of power can never satisfy the person. The world's power is temporary, leaving a person always wanting for more. 

However, our Lord has promised power to every believer through the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. The word "power" in Acts 1:8 is the Greek word dynamis, from which we get the word dynamite. Our Lord told His disciples that before they would be able to witness and evangelize the world, they must receive the dynamis of the Holy Spirit.

This power is not a power that exalts one person above others. It does not control or exploit or manipulate others. No! This power is not to exalt us but to transform us. This power is available to us believers so that we could live a godly life and become effective and powerful witness for Christ. He will give you and me His supernatural power to go through storms, sorrows, and all situations. 

Let us be reminded that the same power that brought Christ back from the dead is active and working within those who have been born of the Spirit.

Notice the verse says, "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you." It is upon the man that the Holy Spirit will come. 

As E. M. Bounds once said ...

"What the Church needs to-day is not more machinery or better, not new organizations or more and novel methods, but men whom the Holy Ghost can use -- men of prayer, men mighty in prayer. The Holy Ghost does not flow through methods, but through men. He does not come on machinery, but on men. He does not anoint plans, but men -- men of prayer."

Closing Thoughts

Bill Crowder gives us a interesting illustration of Need for Power ...

"The first winter that my wife Marlene and I were married was marked by severe blizzards. I can vividly remember one Sunday when we awoke to find that the electricity had been knocked out by an ice storm. Huddled around a battery-powered radio for news on that frigid Sunday, we heard a most unusual announcement. The announcer, before giving the list of church services canceled due to the ice storm, said, "The following churches will be closed due to lack of power."

May it never be said of our church, "Grace & Truth Bible Baptist Church will be closed due to lack of power."

The power has been promised and available to us. It is part of our inheritance as a child of God.

Remember the life and ministry of the Christ are both supernatural and it can only be made powerful through the Spirit of God. We have the promise of the Holy Spirit, the presence of the Holy Spirit and the power of the Holy Spirit to take us through just as the early Christians did. The power of the Holy Spirit is the only power that is sufficient to win spiritual battles against our own selfish desires and the wiles of Satan and to enable and empower to be faithful witnesses for Christ.

Aren't you glad for the ministry of the Holy Spirit today? Set aside some time today to thank Him for the Holy Spirit of promise. Ask God to be pleased to pour to overflowing the supernatural power of His Spirit into your life for the sake of His Kingdom and His glory. Ask Him to do the same for your spouse, your children. Ask God to do the same for our church.

AMEN!