Acts 1 Devotions by Stephen Taylor

Acts 1:1,2

In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day He was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles He had chosen.

How encouraging it is that the ministry Jesus began is still alive and well today! How blessed we are that it didn't leave that day when He ascended but that through the power of the Holy Spirit, it is still going strong today! I'm so very thankful for the salvation Christ paid for me to have, but there is another thing He brought through His victory on the cross, and it's something or, better yet, Someone, that I think we can miss or can take for granted sometimes. He is the Holy Spirit.

We focus on God and Jesus, and rightly so, but there is a third member in the Godhead, and He is just as much God as the other two. I think it's important for us to note here that the Bible says Jesus Himself gave His instructions through the Holy Spirit, thus setting the tone and the precedent for us. If even Christ spoke through Him, then how much more do we need Him in order to speak words of truth, of love, of wisdom, of God?

The Bible tells us that there is power in the Holy Spirit, so if we are denying the Spirit, then we are denying His power. We are handicapping ourselves if we aren't embracing the Spirit and all that He is. He doesn't move at our command. He doesn't move in ways we necessarily understand. He doesn't move in accordance with the world but with the Word! So today, let's embrace and lean into the One Jesus sent to lead us into all truth, comfort us in ways we couldn't imagine, and guide us through this life in a way that is pleasing and glorifying to our God!

Acts 1:8- "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

Luke 24:49- "I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high."

God bless! I love you all, but His love brought the promised gift of the Holy Spirit! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!