Even if we’re well educated, have plenty of experience, and are talented, we won’t fulfil God’s purpose for our lives until ‘the power from above comes down upon [us]’. Listen to these two Scriptures. First, something Jesus said before He was taken up to heaven: ‘I myself will send upon you what my Father has promised. But you must wait in the city until the power from above comes down upon you’ (v. 49 NKJV). Second, an account of what happened at the Day of Pentecost: ‘When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting…And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit’ (Acts 2:1-2, 4 NKJV). The transformation was amazing! Peter, who had just denied Jesus, stood in front of the crowd and preached the gospel to them. And this was the result: ‘That day about three thousand souls were added to them’ (v. 41 NKJV). The power they had just received was also their source of strength when they faced hardship and persecution. ‘When they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness’ (Acts 4:31 NKJV). This wasn’t a one-time experience; they were continually filled with the Holy Spirit. We might think that God’s Spirit is for people with more faith than us, who are closer to perfection than us. But Jesus said, ‘As bad as you are, you know how to give good things to your children. How much more, then, will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!’ (Luke 11:13 NKJV). Today, we can confidently ask God to fill us with His Spirit – and He will.
