Sermons | Times Square Church

VOL XIV / ISSUE 10 / OCTOBER 2018

The Promise Of Power

By Carter Conlon

"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. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language.

Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, 'Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born'" (Acts 2:1–8)

"We hear them speaking in our tongues the wonderful works of God." So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, "Whatever could this mean?" Others mocking said, "They are full of new wine."

But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, "Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel, 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams. And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out my Spirit in those days; and they shall prophesy. And I will show wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath: blood and fire and vapor of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved'" (Acts 2:11–21).

The "last days" that the prophet Joel spoke of is a period of time that began on the Day of Pentecost—with the outpouring of God's Holy Spirit—and will culminate with cosmic signs at the return of Jesus Christ. Between those two points will be a season of redeemed, Spiritempowered people—including you and me! We were left here on Earth to be a testimony of God's love, mercy, power, and redemption. Remember, Satan hates humankind who was created in the image of God, and he will do everything he can to confound, confuse, darken, and destroy us. We as the Church are called to push back this darkness and show people that there is a way to forgiveness and everlasting life through Jesus Christ.

Now this God-initiated, Spiritempowered force on Earth will be comprised of all people, for the Lord said, "It shall come to pass in the last days...I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh" (Acts 2:17). So what will that look like? Let's take a brief look at the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the early disciples to get an idea.

EMPOWERED BY THE HOLY SPIRT

Shortly after the crucifixion of Jesus, the disciples were gathered in an upper room, and they were afraid. "The same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, 'Peace be with you.'When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. So Jesus said to them again, 'Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.' When He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit'" (John 20:19–22).

Not too many days down the road, the disciples were again assembled at an upper room. However, this time God was not just going to do something inside of them to prove that He was their Father. He was going to give them power that had been prophesied in the Old Testament, which Peter referenced on the Day of Pentecost. This power would come upon men and women from all walks of life—young, old, rich, poor, rulers, servants. They would all be given an identical measure of God's Holy Spirit that would raise them out of weakness and into the supernatural strength of God.

This is what happened in our opening Scripture. Suddenly, the disciples who were once weak failures burst out of the Upper Room into the marketplace, filled with the Spirit of Almighty God and given divine abilities. I love the scene! Thousands of people had just come from the temple where they were going through all the rituals, trying to make peace with God. It is like the person in church today who goes to every service, listens to all kinds of messages, attends prayer meetings, and yet still goes home with a deep sense of powerlessness.

Suddenly this crowd coming back from the temple encounters 120 people who have come out of a place of prayer, declaring who God is and what He has done. They are divinely enabled to speak to people of other nations and cultures, telling them in their own language about the marvelous works of God. And the crowd is stopped in their tracks, asking, "What must we do? What could this mean?" (see Acts 2:4–37).

This ought to be the testimony of your life and mine. When you go into your workplace, you should be so God-gripped that everybody in that office looks at you and wonders, "How did this happen? How did he change so radically? Where did this song come from? Where did he get this ability to speak positively when such negativity is in the air? What does this mean?"

THE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Earlier in the book of John, we find more details about the work of the Holy Spirit: "When He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth" (John 16:13). Now if you belong to Christ, you already have the Holy Spirit inside of you, and He promises to guide you into all truth. In other words, as you begin to read the Bible, He guides you beyond mere head knowledge and into experiencing it as a reality in your life.

It is critical that we allow the Holy Spirit to do this, for we do not want to end up like those whom the apostle Paul warned us about when he said, "In the last days, there will be a people who are always learning but never coming into the practical experience and power of what they are learning" (see 2 Timothy 3:7). You see, we can study the Bible, we can learn the Greek and Hebrew meanings of all kinds of words, we can talk about church history, we can study past revivals—but if we never enter into this divine enablement where the Spirit of God takes us out of weakness and into strength, out of the natural and into the supernatural life of Christ, aren't we just a people to be pitied?

John continued: "He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come" (John 16:13). It is just like on the Day of Pentecost when the disciples were speaking the "megalios" of God. In the Greek, this means "the anticipated outworking of the inward presence and power of God." They were talking about things to come! They were declaring who God is and what He was about to do.

Do you realize that the ideas we have for our lives are so far short of what God has in mind for us? I encourage you to let God's plan take root in your life. As you read the Word, allow the Holy Spirit to lead you into it and tell you of things to come. Let Him unfold a path before you—one you could not even hope to walk in your own strength!

ASK FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT

The Upper Room was not the last infilling of this incredible power of God. In the book of Acts we read about Peter and John going up into the temple, and healing was flowing through their lives (see Acts 3:1–10). In response, the order of the day brought them in and threatened them with imprisonment. However, Peter and John gathered with brothers and sisters in Christ and prayed, "Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus" (Acts 4:29–30). They were asking for more of what got them into trouble in the first place! "And 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).

If the disciples needed the Holy Spirit then, how much more do we need Him today? This is a very, very dark day. We are not going to win this moment with an argument; we will win it with an experience with God. We will win it by going into the prayer closet and asking God once again for His power. We will win it with the presence of God being evident in each of our lives.

Remember, the Bible warns us that in the last days, men's hearts will begin to fail them for fear (see Luke 21:26). And the writer of Hebrews says, "Everything that can be shaken is about to be shaken. Only that which cannot be shaken might remain" (see Hebrews 12:26-27). The only things that cannot be shaken are God Himself and His people who empowered by His Spirit.

And so I challenge you to ask God daily for His Holy Spirit. This hour calls for more than just casual Christianity—it calls for an anointing of God's Spirit. We must have the Word in our hearts, songs on our lips, and power in our hands that only God can give. So be determined; be radical. Cry out to God in the morning. Cry out to Him in the evening. Pray when you are at work or at school. Start to pray for people around you. God will surely fulfill His promise to pour out His Spirit on all flesh, and He will have a people who will be a testimony of His power!

This newsletter is an edited version of "THE PROMISE OF POWER," a sermon given on July 8, 2018 in the sanctuary of Times Square Church in New York City. Other sermons are available by visiting our website at tsc.nyc. You are welcome to make additional copies of this sermon for free distribution to friends. However, for all other forms of reproduction or electronic transmission existing copyright laws apply. This sermon cannot be posted on any website or webpage without permission from Times Square Church. Unless otherwise noted, all scripture references are from the New King James Version.