You Will Receive Power

TO READ: Acts 1:1-11

You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere —in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

Acts 1:8

It’s easy for us to talk about our vacation, grandchildren, or new job. It’s harder for us to talk about the Lord.

Jesus said salvation must be preached “to the ends of the earth.” No place is to be missed, no one left out. When Jesus gave his disciples their marching orders, he told them to begin at Jerusalem, the place of their worst experiences and greatest failures. They were then to go on to Judea, the place where their neighbors and Jewish relatives lived and knew the worst about them. After that, they were to go on to Samaria, the place of their worst prejudices. From there they were to go to the ends of the earth.

Actually, it is often easier to go to the farthest parts before attending to the nearest. We feel we are too well known in our “Jerusalem,” so we fear that people won’t believe us. But we need to start there. And whether we are in Jerusalem (our own town), Judea (our own state), Samaria (the home of our enemies), or the ends of the earth (where languages and cultures are completely different), Jesus has promised to be with us “always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). He would not give us a command without the power to do it. We need to go and be witnesses of the gospel. We will receive power to communicate his word effectively.