Wait for the Fire

SENT, Part 1

How many times did you check your phone today?

Now, how many times did you check your spiritual battery?

Power First

Right before Jesus left the earth, He gave His followers the map for everything that came next:

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses..." (Acts 1:8)

Power first. Then witnesses.
Filled first. Then sent.

Wait

Jesus had risen from the dead. His followers had a mission ahead of them.

And His command was: wait.

"Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised" (Acts 1:4).

You can run a church on talent, willpower, and hustle for years. But you can't change one heart with it.

The Fire Falls

For almost a hundred years, Yosemite National Park put on a "Firefall." Every night, men pushed glowing embers off a cliff on cue while crowds watched below. It was beautiful. But if a man can schedule it, a man can cancel it.

Preparation matters. But a carefully planned service cannot manufacture the work of the Holy Spirit.

At Pentecost, nobody was up top pushing. The believers saw what seemed to be tongues of fire resting on each of them, and they were filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:3-4).

The fire was not something they produced. It was something they received.

Filled Again

Peter was filled at Pentecost (Acts 2:4). Then again before the council (Acts 4:8). Then again in a prayer meeting (Acts 4:31).

Being filled is not a date on a card from summer camp. It's a meal you keep coming back to.

Yesterday's filling will not carry today's assignment.

What the Fire Is For

A few weeks earlier, Peter couldn't admit he knew Jesus. Then the fire fell, and he preached to thousands. About 3,000 responded that day (Acts 2:41).

The Spirit's power is for more than a moving moment. It equips us to bear witness to Jesus, even when we're afraid.

Bring It Home

1. Stop running on empty.
2. Pick a place you go every day without thinking. The shower. The truck.
3. Pray seven words there: "Holy Spirit, fill me for today's assignment."
4. Do it again tomorrow.

You were filled once. Are you filled now?

And if you've never given your life to Jesus, begin there. Turn to Him in faith. You don't have to make yourself worthy of His grace.

Come Home

We're walking through the book of Acts in our series SENT. Join us Sundays at 10:00 a.m. at 501 S Main Street in Sheridan.

Let's Pray

Holy Spirit, I can't do this on my own steam. Fill me for today's assignment. Amen.

#Jesus_NtheKnow