But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
I remember when I first encounter a flat car battery, I asked for help from a friend. He drove his small car right next to mine, and we used a jumper cable to attempt to jump start my car. We did everything we knew but the car just would not start. Finally, we gave up. I called a mechanic. He came with his 4-wheel drive. Took out a jumper cable which was visibly thicker than the one my friend and I were using. Connected his car battery to mine. I switched on the ignition. Voila! With one switch the car started! I was puzzled, my mechanic was amused. He said because my friend’s car battery was not powerful enough to jump start my car, and the cable was too thin to transmit power.
Whenever there is a deficit of power, where power cannot be generated anymore, an external source of power is needed. The greater the deficit, the greater external power is needed. It follows that, bigger the task, bigger power is required.
The disciples were asked to wait in Jerusalem by Jesus before He ascended into heaven. In fact, He said to wait for power from on high, from heaven, to wait for the Holy Spirit to be poured upon them. They were instructed that this is an essential step before going out to bear witness for Jesus in the world. It seems to suggest 2 things (it is most probably true on both account). Firstly, the task and journey ahead of the disciples were so impossible to accomplish. And secondly, they totally lack the ability to carry on, a severe deficit of power. Thus, the need of the Holy Spirit power from heaven!
In the world we live in today, many of us, if not all of us, could well feel that we are in the disciples’ shoes right now. We need the power from on high, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on us. We need His wisdom, His grace, His favour, His guidance, His ability to face the challenges ahead of us. We need the Holy Spirit to fill our lives and our hearts with the presence of God, with His peace, His supernatural faith and discernment. Oh, how we need Him!
On Pentecost the Holy Spirit was poured out on the disciples. Since that 1st Pentecost, God has been willing to pour His Holy Spirit, that Power from Heaven on us, His people. Just like using the right cable would jump start my car, we need the right “cable” to receive the anointing of the Holy Spirt – the humility before God to acknowledge that we need Him and without Him we are poor and powerless.
Let us therefore, get the right cable! Humble before God and hungry for the Holy Spirit. Receive Him now!