Jesus' disciples were witnesses of God's great redemptive work--Jesus' life, death and resurrection. When Jesus appears to them after His resurrection, He takes time to instruct them about how Moses and the Prophets all spoke of Him (see Luke 24:27, 44-49). Yet, the disciples needed more than knowledge in order to fulfill Christ's command to "make disciples" (Matthew 28:18-20)--they needed the promise of the Father:
And while stayingwith them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized withthe Holy Spirit not many days from now” (Acts 1:4-5).
The disciples needed the power that only the Holy Spirit could provided. The Spirit is the One who would enable the disciples to be witnesses--heralds of the good news of Jesus. Apart from the work of the Spirit, the disciples ministry would have been ineffective. And the same is true for us. We must not rely on our own knowledge, abilities or strength as we seek to bring the good news to others. We need the power that only the Spirit supplies.
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth (Acts 1:8).
In his book The Christians as the Romans Saw Them, Robert Louis Wilken writes about a test that Pliny used in order to determine whether or not people were Christians. For those who denied being Christians, how could Pliny know if they were telling the truth? In order to combat this problem, Pliny developed the following test:
He had statues of the emperor Trajan and of the Capitone gods--Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva--brought into the room. Those who had already admitted that they were Christians he sent off to be executed, as he had done with the first group. Those who denied the charge he asked to repeat after him a "formula of invocation to the gods" and "to make an offering of wine and incense" to Trajan's statue. He also ordered them to "revile the name of Christ" (25).
After reading this passage, 1 Corinthians 12:3 came to my mind: "Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit" (ESV). May the Spirit give each of us boldness as we stand against a world that wants us to revile our Savior. Let us stand firm in the faith and proclaim along with Peter and John: “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard" (Acts 4:19-20, ESV)
What is the relationship between God's sovereignty and man's responsibility? This is a question that Christians have wrestled with throughout the history of the church. In this post, I'd like to briefly think about this question as it relates to God's providence and the problem of evil.Let us begin by considering a question: Who sent Joseph to Egypt? On the one hand, we can say that his brothers sent him to Egypt by selling him to the Ishmaelites (Genesis 37:12ff). Yet, on the other hand, we can say that God sent Joseph to Egypt (Genesis 45:7-8). Let us also consider another question: Who was responsible for Jesus death? On the one hand, it is clear that Jesus was crucified by the evil acts of lawless men such as Judas, Herod, Pontias Pilate, and the Jews (Acts 4:27). And it is equally clear that these people are held responsible for their actions (Luke 22:22). Yet, on the other hand, everything happened just as God had predestined for it to happen (Acts 2:23, 4:28).I know that we have only begun to touch the surface of this discussion, but I believe that we can already draw some conclusions. First, God is sovereign over all things--even evil acts such as selling Joseph into slavery or crucifying Jesus. Yet, He never does evil and Scripture never blames God for evil (James 1:13). Second, man is always held accountable for his actions. Joseph's brothers sinned against him. Judas betrayed Jesus. In response to this mystery, I believe that we should be humbled. Anytime we are confronted with mystery, we should be reminded that we creatures and not the Creator. Our knowledge is limited, while His knowledge is unlimited. We see things dimly, while He sees all things clearly. He is God and there is no other.
We certainly live in an age of information. We can take in and distribute information in so many ways: Internet, television, radio, books, newspapers, etc. I certainly appreciate and utilize all of these communication forms...actually, you and I are enjoying the benefits of the Internet now! There is no doubt that the Church has benefited from these mediums. Yet, we must not forget that the early Church lived in a very different time and place. Big church buildings? Nope. Flashy Internet sites? Not hardly. MP3 sermon audio? No. Big Christian publishing houses? Not even close. In a sermon on Acts 5:12-32, Dr. Derek W.H. Thomas puts it like this: But there were no buildings. There was no choir. There was nothing to attract them from an external point of view. There was just the blandness of the apostles and other men and women talking about Jesus. That’s all there was. There was no movie, there were no books, there were no pamphlets or tracts; there were no radio stations. As far as we know, there weren’t any great
preachers, although Peter seems now to be turning into a great preacher. It’s all of God, you see. It’s all of God. This is the Lord’s doing. There are no formulas here; there is no methodology of evangelism that you can discern. They’re engaging in witnessing to Jesus, to His life and death and resurrection, and exaltation to the right hand of God. It’s all about Jesus Christ, and they’re talking about Him! And men and women are being drawn to Him!
Although all of our modern communications can be used to the glory of God, we must never forget this truth: As God's people--those called to bear witness in the world--we must remember that our formulas, methods, or mediums are not what will compel the world to turn to our Triune God. Our primary task is to equip our hearts, minds, and lips with the message of Jesus' life, death, resurrection, and reign.(If you'd like to read or listen to all of Dr. Thomas' sermon, Prison Break, go here.)
