Check out all the previous Acts readings here.
Acts Reading Plan | Week 1 | Day 2
Prayer
Jesus said in John 10, that apart from Him we can do nothing. As you come to spend time with Him today, ask Him to be with you and to speak with you.
Bible Reading: Acts 1:6-11
Read these verses three times slowly.
Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 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.”
After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”
Reflection & Questions
One of the first questions the disciples have for the resurrected Jesus is: “are you going to restore Israel now?” All through His ministry people had been asking for that, hoping for that, and now He’s resurrected, surely this is the time! We know it wasn’t time, and that God’s
plans were far bigger than the disciples could ever have imagined. Jesus meant it when he said you will be my witnesses to “the ends of the earth.” That’s exactly what happened!
However, even though they had witnessed all the events of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, they still weren’t ready to be His witnesses. In fact, as Jesus ascends into heaven, they just stand there looking – they don’t know what to do next! They needed power. They needed guidance. They needed strength. They needed the Holy Spirit. Jesus says, “you receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.”
The same is true for us today. We cannot carry out our mission without the Holy Spirit. We won’t know what to say, or when to say it. We will cower in fear or be overzealous. The Holy Spirit empowers us to be witnesses. Everyone who believes in Jesus receives the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9), and through prayer, listening for His voice and learning the ways He guides, we learn how to be His witnesses.
- When you think about being a witness, is it something you think you do alone or with the power of the Holy Spirit? What difference does it make knowing the Holy Spirit is with you?
- Who is your ONE? (Someone you are praying for, inviting to church, telling about Jesus). Have you sensed the Holy Spirit guiding you on how to be a witness to them?
Prayer
Pray that the Holy Spirit would guide you and empower you in witnessing to your ONE about Jesus.
Worship Song
You might use this song today to worship Jesus today:
Check out more Bible Reading Plans here.
Questions?
Ed Applegate
