Ephesians 3:16– that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man
I am terrible when it comes to building things requiring tools to assemble. Throw in the curve ball of no instructions for a DIY project and I might as well quit before I get started. You could say I am hammer, screwdriver, saw, etc. challenged. But even in my pitiful state of tool ineptness, I recognize the benefits of a power tool over a standard hand tool. For example, on the rare occasion I am forced to use a screwdriver, I will always opt for the power of an electric drill. Why? Because I can complete the job far more quickly, efficiently, and impress my wife by using the power drill.
As Christians, we try to operate in our ever changing and challenging lives by ourselves using only the original tools we were born with. While your selection of tools you came into this world with may be stunning, without the power of God to run them, you will always be operating at a disadvantage. God recognizes our weakness when we depend on our own abilities and so He sent the Holy Spirit who empowers us to use what the Father has given to us to do mighty things through Him. Things we could never hope to accomplish on our own!
Acts 1:8 says, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” The Greek word translated witness in this verse is where we get the English word for “martyr.” Jesus was telling those standing there, they would one day be called upon to die for their faith in Him. They need not fear because the Holy Spirit would give them the power to not only take the gospel to the world, but to willingly lay down their lives for Him.
Peter was standing among those Jesus was addressing. The same Peter who denied Christ three times rather than be counted with Him when He was tried and crucified (
Luke 22:54-62). Peter by himself was a simple fisherman from the small blue collar town of Galilee. He had a limited education and his greatest talent was fishing, but when the Holy Spirit arrived on the day of Pentecost and empowered those in the upper room (
Acts 2:1-4), Peter was energized and God used him to do something mighty. Peter stepped out before the crowd and preached the gospel of Jesus Christ without hesitation and without fear (
Acts 2:14-38). On that fateful day, God empowered a regular guy to do something extraordinary and the church of Jesus Christ was born with three thousand coming to Him at once (
Acts 2:40, 41).
If you feel you are not qualified to work for God or you are powerless to walk through the challenges of life, the Father has made a way for you. Call upon the Holy Spirit to empower you and like Peter, He can use you to do extraordinary things if you will let Him. God uses the things mankind deems worthless to accomplish His greatest works because it is not about the man, but about the God he serves (
1 Corinthians 1:26-31)!
Reflection:
- Do you think the empowering of the Holy Spirit applies to us today? Why or why not?
- Have you sought the power of the Holy Spirit in your life? Why or why not?
- What are your talents, no matter how small or insignificant you believe they are? Are you using them for the kingdom of God? Why not?
- Stop right now and ask the Holy Spirit to empower you to serve God with all you are and all He has given you. I promise if you ask He will answer!