The Four E’s of Discipleship: Empowerment

By:  Dale Weckbacher

Acts 1:8

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.

(CSB)

Jesus ascension to heaven meant Jesus physically left earth to be with God the Father.  However, this did not leave His followers powerless because after Jesus left, he sent the Holy Spirit to empower them.  Even the most established and encouraged believer in Christ can fail in their witness for Christ due to lack of empowerment in their lives.  Believers are also in the middle of a spiritual battle and in need of the Holy Spirit’s power to effectively use the spiritual weapons of warfare (Ephesians 6:10-18). 

The context of Jesus’ discourse with the Samaritan woman at the well was regarding where to worship God (John 4:19-20).  At that time, the place of worship was the Temple in Jerusalem with the presence of God in the most holy place.  However, when Jesus said it is finished, the veil was torn signifying anyone choosing to could now enter into God’s presence in worship (Matthew 27:51).  However, where did the presence of God go?

The answer is in each believers heart which is why Jesus told his disciples not to immediately leave Jerusalem spreading the good news of the Gospel but to wait for the promised Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4).  During the coming of the Holy Spirit as recorded in Acts 2:1-4 the Holy Spirit did not just enter the room, he entered each individual in the room.  Therefore, the presence of God is in the heart of everyone choosing to believe in Jesus as their savior. 

Jesus also told the Samaritan woman that true worshipers of God worship in Spirit and truth.  Unfortunately, much of the reason for failure to mention the empowerment of the Holy Spirit in many churches is an over emphasis on the spirit part of worship by some.  What I am talking about is the ongoing dispute over whether one must speak with tongues as a sign of receiving the Holy Spirit. 

While it is true those receiving the Holy Spirit at Pentecost spoke with tongues, Acts 2:5-6 explains why.  Pentecost was one of three Jewish holidays requiring people travel to Jerusalem.  However, people of many other ethnicities were present in the city as well.  (1)  Therefore, the speaking of tongues is not a sign of one receiving the Holy Spirit but instead a miracle of God, empowering the 120 to declare the message of the Gospel in the diverse languages of those in the city.  In other words, the coming of the Holy Spirit was empowerment to declare the message of the Gospel, which in this case meant speaking in tongues and not as some form of disorderly worship in public services. 

However, there are two other instances of the coming of the Holy Spirit on believers accompanied with the speaking in tongues that needs explanation.  The first of these instances occurs in Acts 10:46, occurring in the context of Peter sharing the Gospel with Cornelius, a Gentile.  Prior to this occurrence, the belief was the Gospel was only for Jews and not Gentiles.  Therefore, the speaking in tongues was a sign for Peter, indicating that the Gospel was not just for Jews, but Gentiles as well since Peter was one of the 120 at Pentecost. 

The third instance of speaking in tongues recorded in Scripture is the twelve disciples of John the Baptist in Ephesus recorded in Acts 19:1-7.  After their baptism into the name of the Lord Jesus, Paul laid hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit accompanied with speaking in tongues.  These twelve men were disciples of John the Baptist and may have viewed their baptism into the name of the Lord Jesus as like the baptism of repentance of John the Baptist.  However, the accompanying sign of speaking in tongues told these twelve men something different had occurred in their lives. 

In the contentious post-Christian culture of modern society, it is increasingly important for disciples of Christ to minister with the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.  The thief, Satan has one goal, the destruction of humanity John 10:10.  This was his objective in the Garden when the serpent deceived Adam and Eve, separating them from God.  Then the unexpected happened, God sent His only Son to take the death penalty for the sins of humanity providing eternal life (John 3:16).  The calling of the church is making disciples (Matthew 28:19-20) and to do this effectively requires the empowerment of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8). 

1. Schiffer, Kathy. The People in Jerusalem on Pentecost: Who Were They? www.patheos.com. [Online] Seasons of Grace, June 8, 2014. [Cited: October 28, 2018.] http://www.patheos.com/blogs/kathyschiffer/2014/06/the-people-in-jerusalem-on-pentecost-who-were-they/.