Acts 2:1-13 | God's SpiritSample

From the moment the Spirit came upon those early disciples, it changed them. They were empowered to do things they could not ordinarily do. They were compelled to boldness over timidity and fear. They spoke and people could not help but take notice. Acts 2:4 says it was the Spirit that enabled them.

The venerable New Testament scholar, William Barclay, draws a path through Acts showing God’s Spirit as the source of all guidance, the source of courage and power, and how the people of the church were people of the Spirit. (Read his Daily Study Bible series on Acts sometime. It’s chock-full of examples throughout Acts, of God’s Spirit at work.)

He points out something suggestive in Acts 5:32, something we can miss if we’re not careful. God pours out his Spirit abundantly, and in the continued life of the Christian, it seems related to obedience. “The measure of the Spirit which a man can possess is conditioned by the kind of man he is. It means that the man who is honestly trying to do the will of God will experience more and more of the wonder of the Spirit. It means that the living of the Christian life brings with it its own power.”

The life of a Christian is life in the Spirit. Without the Spirit’s power, our efforts are futile. Which is why attuning to his way is so essential. Which begs a question. Are you submitting to the Spirit or squelching him?